Mass Effect: Missing in Action
by Muse1505
Summary: An Alliance marine goes missing in action in 2179, only to reappear in a Cerberus base during the events of Mass Effect 1. What has Cerberus done to him and how can Shepard put him to use? Shepard/Liara and OC/Tali
1. Prologue

2179 Common Era – 3 years before the events of Eden Prime

The Kodiak had started its descent, leaving the SSV Cairo as it made its way towards the planet. The 8 man special ops team was eager to get their mission underway and Operations Chief Alex Lloyd was humouring his inquisitive friend and team mate Corporal O'Hare.

"So what are we doing in the back end of nowhere again chief?"

Alex went to answer, being interrupted by the rattling of the Kodiak as it started hurtling through the atmosphere, "God knows O'Hare, but whatever it is the Admiral is pretty adamant on it. Once the captain finishes getting briefed he fills the rest of the blanks in"

"Yh but come on chief, all we've been told is that there's some facility down there and the admiral is 'suspicious' of it" adding emphasis to the word suspicious with fingered quotation marks. Receiving a firm but playful smack to the back of his helmet as Captain Spencer stepped into the middle of the Kodiak.

"and the fact the admiral is suspicious should be good enough for one of his spec-ops teams O'Hare" his speech vibrating slightly as he walked down the middle of the shuttle, wobbling before grabbing hold of a rail above his head before standing straight to address his team of 7 marines. "So listen up!" the words followed by each marine bolting up right in their seats, eyes locking straight at the captain through the slits in their helmets "We'll be landing in approximately 5 minutes, so far you know that we're doing a sweep of this area. The admiral believes there is a facility here that has something to do with the Akuze incident 2 years ago"

"The Thresher Maw attack?" one of the marines suddenly asked earning looks from the rest of his comrades "I lost a good friend in that attack"

"Don't let it cloud your judgment now, you get off track and you'll end up doing something stupid and getting yourself or one of us killed, so park it in the back of your mind" the captain quickly added to fill the silence left by the marines comment. "So as I was saying, we're sweeping the area and if we do indeed find a facility we're to do a close ground recon and attempt to secure any info we can."

"Are we expecting…well anything at all?" the lieutenant chirped from the rear of the Kodiak "I mean if we're not expecting to even find a facility, then why send us? We're special operation marines wouldn't a platoon of regulars have been good enough?" the inquiry had all the marines looking at the captain for answers, it was true. If they weren't even to expect anything why send a group of highly trained marines.

The 15 year veteran stood at the front of the ship replied after a short pause "That is true but the Admiral is going of a hunch, spec-ops are easier to move around plus we're a small squad. Easy insert and quick extraction plus there's deniability and of course, the small fact that if anything does goes tits up we're touch enough to get out of there without a scratch" the captain sighed before slowly continuing "plus the admiral is worried….that platoon on Akuze had 50 men, most of them kids, he doesn't want to risk a massacre"

"So instead he'll risk us?...fair enough, I've had worse reasons to walk on some god-forsaken arsehole of a planet" O'Hare quickly before getting another quick whack up the side of the head from Alex "Oi! What was that for?"

"The captain was going to hit you anyway, figured I'd save him the wobbly walk over O'Hare" Alex quickly snipped back at the corporal before cutting off the expected rebuttal from the "comedian" of the group "So sir, if we're to expect anything how are we going to move? And on the odd chance there is anything down there what's our ROE?"

"Rules of engagement are standard, don't fire at anything unless it attacks first after which you're clear to engage. Just try to keep it tidy boys, pick your targets carefully and make sure they are hostile first" The captain resumed with the briefing, the atmosphere instantly getting back to the serious nature you come to expect before a mission "as for movement we'll be in our standard teams, I'll be leading Charlie fire team and the Lt will have delta. We have two points of reference to check out and we'll split up to check both ASAP. I'm sending all relevant data to your omni-tools, read as much as you can and get familiar with the mission" the captain paused as he tapped at his omni-tool, awkwardly jolting around as he let go of the rail before his entire squads arms lit up. "Right then, read up boys, our ETA is 15 minutes, you know what to do so let's get it done. GET TACTICAL MARINES!" the captain shouted as he walked back into the cockpit.

"OORAH!" the call resonating off the walls as each and every marine chanted the cry before looking down at their omni-tools reading and learning the mission intel as fast as they could before prepping the rest of their gear for drop off. 

- 1 Hour Later, planet side – 

Charlie team was walking through the rocky valley; the 4 man squad was led by Captain Spencer, with Op. Chief Lloyd, Corporal O'Hare and Private Keene. The squad moved along the rough terrain as carefully and as quickly as they could, Keene at the front followed by the captain. The squad was in a tactical column with 10 meter spacing, enough distance to prevent an ambush but close enough to maintain eye contact.

Alex was 21 years old, pretty young to be an operations chief but due to his skill with software hacking, he had been quickly bolted up the ranks. Mainly to help teach new recruits get up to speed as fast as possible, the alliance always jumped at the chance to get experts teaching and that was Alex's excuse for his promotion. He always felt that his promotion was pointless but all that really mattered was he knew what he was doing and he knew how to shoot a gun, his rank was secondary to his skill as a marine.

The squad continued to move along the terrain, making their way up a steep incline to the top of the ridge before suddenly Keene signalled to stop, the marines quickly made their way up to the top of the ridge, laying down in line with him before realising why he had stopped them all. A building was sitting right at the base of one of the mountains, the entrance was just a tube leading into it but there it was. Kahoku had been right after all

"Well fuck me sideways…the admiral was right" O'Hare snorted, looking over to Alex who was equally surprised "so much for a nice walk along in the park right?"

"Never a dull day in the corp, so captain what's our next move?" Alex rolled over and slide down the hill slightly, sitting back against the hill and looking up at the sky.

"Now, we call delta team and get them back to us, no point having them running around out there when we've found it. O'Hare get on the horn and get them back to the Kodiak, the shuttle can fly them back to us" the captain ordered, staring down at the facility through his avenger's scope "we'll maintain watch on it and if nothing is happening by the time delta gets here we'll work our way towards it for a closer inspection"

"No problem sir" O'Hare quickly replied before sliding down the ridge to make the call to delta. After 5 minutes had passed the corporal scrambled back up the rocks and sat himself down next to Alex. Delta would be arriving in about 30 minutes so they had time to kill and with the captain and Keene keeping an eye out, they had an opportunity to relax. Alex worked on his omni-tool, perfecting his equipment's runtimes as best he could, the faster it worked, the faster he worked and getting through a door or security system was always best done as fast as possible. After half an hour of tapping away at his omni-tool he started to hear the tell-tale noise of the Kodiak as it cut through the air. About time they got here, Alex had finished his checks at least 15 minutes ago and playing solitaire was really beginning to get dull, grabbing his rifle and letting the glow around his arm fade he crawled back into line with the rest of his squad where the Kodiak finally came into view as it slowly made its way towards them.

Without warning a loud crack erupted from the other side of the mountain, a missile suddenly appeared and flew straight into the side of the Kodiak, shunting the shuttle in the air before a second missile flew straight through its downed kinetic barriers, colliding with the metal of the shuttle and exploding on impact. Charlie squad watched in silent horror as the Kodiak nose-dived down and crashed in the valley in front of the base, flames rising up and engulfing the shuttle entirely. They hoped, prayed that someone would clamber out of the wreckage but after a few minutes of watching they realised that delta squad was dead and their Kodiak was gone.

"SHIT!" O'Hare shouted, punching the ground in anger, and glaring at the captain for answers "the fuck just happened?"

"That was a SAM wasn't it sir?" Keene was starting to panic, he was young and the sudden deaths of his friends was hitting him hard as he stared almost absent minded at the crashed shuttle

"O'Hare calm down! Get yourself together and help the private, now! Chief!" the captain snapped, immediately taking control of the situation, stopping it from spiralling out of control "get on the radio and call the Cairo, we've got a confirmed hostile presence and we're not going to be enough!"

Alex just nodded and slipped down the hill away from the commotion of his squad, immediately activating his omni-tool and hailing the SSV Cairo only to be met by the sound of static. 'Oh please just be atmospheric disturbance, I seriously don't need this now'. He kept trying, hailing over and over before attempting to boost his signal to try and beat through the disturbance. As he flicked through his channels over and over he discovered something that really didn't bode well….they were being jammed. Actively jammed by a site very close to them and if they were being jammed by the unknown hostile forces there was a very good possibility their communications were being monitored. "Oh fuck, CAPTAIN! We have a serious problem!" Alex started to sprint back up the hill falling back in line and still out of breath told the captain what he had discovered; he hadn't even finished his sentence when a whizzing sound went flying at their position, followed by the crumpling noise of Keene's body as it rolled down the hillside.

Time stood still, it was only a split second but time stood still for Alex as he watched Keene drop and roll lifelessly down the hill, the silence was then broken by the roar of gunfire, unbeknownst to the squad the hostiles had outflanked them and were firing relentlessly on their position. Instead of even trying to fight back the captain immediately gave the order to fall back and retreat, each marine sliding down the hill as fast as they could and bolting along the valley they were in, gun fire dancing around their feet and occasionally colliding with their kinetic shielding. The 3 marines ran for their lives, moving as fast as they could. Alex was at the front, he had always been quick and he was quickly moving along with his squad mate's close behind, each member of the team turning every so often to fire a quick suppressing burst at the enemy. They knew they were out manned and out gunned but the instinct to survive had kicked in. They kept moving as fast as they could, the sounds of the soldiers behind them getting closer and closer until suddenly the object that had taken down the Kodiak appeared in front of them.

A gunship

The last thing Alex saw before he lost consciousness was a missile hurtling towards him and his own feet flying above his head. The bodies of O'Hare and the captain on the ground around him and the boot of a soldier, dressed in gold and white armour coming down into his visor, before he was left in total darkness.

3 days later the special operations team was declared MIA, presumed KIA. Admiral Kahoku eventually sent a much larger force to investigate the area, but no trace of the marines nor was what happened to them ever found. It is now the year 2183, and Commander John Shepard has been named the first human spectre and the war with the geth has started.


	2. The Cerberus Base

Commander John Shepard, the first human spectre, hero of Elysium and son of Captain Hannah Shepard. His first assignment had been less than 'routine', Nihlus has been killed by Saren Arterius. The Prothean beacon had given him a vision and now after convincing the council of Saren's betrayal, he was now leading the manhunt on the former spectre. He had picked up plenty of team members since Eden Prime, yes he had lost Private Jenkins, but he had gained a squad he believed was fully capable of handling the task at hand.

Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, a good soldier and the last surviving member of her unit after the events of Eden Prime. She was wary of the many non-human members now aboard the Normandy; however she seemed to be trying her best not to let those xenophobic tendencies get in the way of the mission.

The hot-headed C-Sec officer Garrus, a turian with a knack for sniper rifles and a lack of patience for red tape, something Shepard hoped he could work out of Garrus. Red tape and rules were there for a reason, and maybe this mission could help show the disgruntled turian why. Shepard knew that the turian wouldn't let Saren get away, Saren was a disgrace to all turians and wanted to stop him just as much as any human on the ship.

Urdnot Wrex, a team member the commander had never expected to end up on his ship. A very large, very powerful krogan was a powerful thing but Wrex was more than just a living weapon. His biotics perfectly complemented his skill as a warrior and his intelligence was almost un heard of amongst krogans. Wrex was definitely one of the most dangerous people amongst his crew, and Shepard planned to unleash all that krogan fury straight at the enemy.

Tali'Zorah nar Rayya, the quirky, eager to please quarian on her pilgrimage. John hadn't been sure about letting her join the team, she was young and had spent the majority of her life on the flotilla but she had shown herself to be capable in a fire fight both outside of Chora's Den and the fact she had managed to collect the information on Saren. He figured she deserved a chance and she had come through, both in the Normandy, much to engineer Adam's delight, and on the battlefield. Her technical expertise were second to none and her ability with a shotgun was also not be trifled with.

Liara T'soni had been a recent addition to the team. Therum had been a nightmare but they had gotten out with their lives at the cost of the dig site. She was young, relatively speaking anyway, and naïve with matters concerning the galaxy at large, but her biotics were powerful and she was fully capable of giving both Kaidan and Wrex a run for their money in sheer power alone. Plus her in depth knowledge of the protheans was proving invaluable, helping the spectre decipher his visions and follow the rogue spectre's plans.

The commander chuckled to himself in his quarters as he thought about the team he had pulled together; they were a rag tag group with as many different species as there were humans. The Normandy crew had been slightly suspicious at first, but his talk with Pressley had calmed the situation and after several weeks aboard the Normandy together. The crew was knitting together nicely, human or not. They were out to stop Saren and the Geth, motivations didn't matter and everyone was striving to beat the bastard.

However right now, their mission was not involved in hunting down the rogue spectre, but taking revenge on the death of Admiral Kahoku. Shepard had helped the admiral discover what happened to his team, they had been lured into a thresher maw attack. Something Kahoku was saddened, but surprised, to hear. It had been a while after reporting back to the admiral before he received another transmission; he had found bases belonging to an organisation called Cerberus on the planet Binthu, the commander was asked to take out the bases. No one in his team expected what they found. Husks, Rachni and then finally...the admiral himself; he had been executed, needle marks on his arms suggested he probably went peacefully and as much as a comfort that was to the commander. He wanted revenge. He hadn't known Kahoku well but the Admiral was a good man, a fine officer and a victim of this terrorist group. They found the details of the last base on the admiral's body and were well on their way.

The Destination; Nepheron in the Voyager system

They had time before they arrived, a few hours to kill until Shepard could put, what he hoped to be a permanent, end to the terrorists. But it wouldn't be that simple, he knew it…it never was that simple. He decided to make his rounds on the ship, checking on his crew. It wasn't necessary but he wasn't a captain and he knew the value of a commander who at least pretended to care. It kept morale up; it kept the crew believing in his command. You could be ruthless, you could command with an iron fist but ultimately, hope and belief in the man giving you orders is a better way of keeping your men alive. Fear shakes soldiers, it makes them nervous and in the end, those nerves can get them killed.

The commander enjoyed talking to his crew, Joker's….jokes.., Kaidan's stories of biotic boot camp, Wrex's mercenaries tales including his one about Saren, Shepard had been right. That man rubbed everyone the wrong way, including a battle hardened Krogan, it confirmed only one thing. Saren Arterius had to be stopped and he would be. Cerberus first, then onto Saren and the Geth. Garrus was also someone Shepard enjoyed talking to; the turian was headstrong and smart, a great shot and a skilled soldier. But he was naïve about many things, he had a gung-ho attitude and Shepard was straightening out bit by bit. Today Garrus told his story about Dr. Heart escaping, and how he had wanted to destroy a ship filled with hostages just to stop him, John immediately shot that idea down. No matter what you cannot endanger people's lives. As a soldier or a police officer, you protect the innocent no matter what and stand as a beacon they can look up to, killing is a last resort, always; there is no exception. Garrus looked like he was starting to understand, by the end of this mission Shepard would carve out a good soldier, Garrus would be one tough bastard one day and Shepard wanted to make sure Garrus would be a tough bastard who knew to always do the right thing if he could.

Ashley was a quick visit, a typical xenophobic comment, a line of poetry. Shepard liked her, she was a good marine but she was closed minded to the universe in many ways. Hopefully working with a non-human crew would help, he felt sorry for the legacy General Williams had left on her family but he had always felt the general had done the right thing. Win or lose he saved lives, lives that probably would've ended on Shanxi had the battle continued. His visit with Tali was quick, she was a very dedicated worker and as a quarian she told Shepard that she had to prove her worth on the ship. Adam's already told him that she had and told Tali many times that she was working too hard but her love of the Normandy was clearly flowing through in her work, the engine was starting to run even more efficiently and no one could deny it was all down to their resident quarian.

John left engineering and made his way up the painfully slow elevator, his final visit was to Liara. John had started to develop a close relationship with the 'young' asari, she was important to the mission but at the same time. She was a good person, young and naïve but a good person and this mission would take its toll on her. He had started out just making sure she was ok but it soon became more than just a commander and his crew member, they became quick friends and given the right circumstances…well who knew? The commander would let things take their natural cause and besides he enjoyed watching her mumble over her words, accidentally letting slip her wish to "examine him". He always left her room with a smile on his face.

But now, now was not the time for fun or relaxation or even small chats. They were arriving at Binthu, Cerberus was going to pay. Kahoku's death would be avenged and everyone involved would have a peace of mind. John hoped it would be that easy. He moved to his station and started to gather his equipment, calling for Kaidan and Tali to gear up and get ready. The rest of his squad would be ready, waiting in reserve just in case the worst happened. He chose Kaidan and Tali for simple reasons, the previous bases had heavy encryption and locks, Tali was perfect. It was also going to be close quarters, biotics would help massively and Kaidan had the experience to assist in a CQC situation. It would be tight and messy, Liara wasn't ready quite yet. The team collected their equipment and moved to the Mako.

"ETA on Nepheron, 5 minutes Commander" Joker's voice rang out through the ship as Shepard and Kaidan stepped into the elevator, Tali waiting at the bottom with her favourite shotgun. The three stepped into the mako and prepped for the drop. Something the commander and Kaidan thoroughly enjoyed, Tali never would understand why. 

- Planet Nepheron, 20 minutes later - 

"Commander, I see the base up ahead" reported Kaidan, as he looked down from his position in the gunner's seat "and by the way, maybe next time I should drive Shepard….we could avoid rolling around so much and I can take my helmet off if I vomit. Tali isn't so lucky"

Shepard just responded with a snort and Tali groaned, knowing it meant that she'd just have to eat less for lunch next time. Thankfully the rocking was over, the ground was flat and Tali was silently saying Keelah Se'lai over and over inside her helmet before suddenly the mako rocked violently again, followed by a loud boom.

"KEELAH!" Tali shrieked, jumping in her seat before quickly grabbing back at the hand rails.

"We've got incoming!" Kaidan shouted before his voice was drowned out by the sound of the machine gun firing, the mako vibrating as the gun rattled off round after round with the occasional thumb of a missile being launched. The gun fight was over before it started, the soldiers surrounding the base were trained but against the Mako they didn't stand much of a chance. "We're clear sir" Kaidan finally said, breathing a little heavier from the adrenaline rush of the fight, it was easy but that burst would help him in the upcoming assault, it would help them all.

The team dismounted, jumping out of the mako's main hatch and quickly running up to the door. Shepard and Kaidan mounting positions on either side while Tali went straight to the main console as she went to work hacking the encryption on the door, it would be easy, she'd already hacked several of these bases but something was wrong. "Err…shepard?"

"Having trouble Tali?" asked Shepard, a little surprised that the quarian had been stopped in her tracks by a lock

"No that's not it, I'll get through it but this isn't a normal lockdown. At least not like the other bases, this one is new. Someone else made this encryption and its good Shepard, it's very good. Whoever made this wanted time in the base" Tali said, her voice tickled with the sound of her being impressed, not many things slowed her down, not this much anyway

"Time? Time for what?" Kaidan asked "You make it sound like we're not the only people gunning for these guys but…there's nothing else here, no other team"

"Guess we'll find out soon enough" Shepard replied as the door suddenly opened, the team slowly moved in. Kaidan at its point, followed by Shepard and then Tali. The squad moved slowly through the hallway and down its stairs to be greeted by flickering lights, the squad then quickly stopped and crouched down aiming their weapons straight down the hall as a resonating sound of gunfire and screams where heard deeper inside the base. A single rifle was firing, fully automatic and it was hitting its targets, the responding gunfire was slowly dissipating as people died.

Kaidan looked back at Shepard as they crouched in the flickering darkness, waiting for orders as they all tried to figure out what was happening "what do you think commander? A traitor?"

"God knows Kaidan, but we'll find out pretty soon. Ok move slowly, as little sound as possible. Whatever is going on, let's not do anything hasty" The Commander quickly replied. Kaidan and Tali nodded in response and slowly got up to move, stopping at the sudden stop of gunfire. Someone was screaming in pain, they echoed through the halls before a lone crack echoed the base. "Ok move, now we need to get this under control"

The squad approached the door, opening it was much less of a challenge as this one wasn't encrypted; whoever locked the main door didn't care about this one. The doors slid open and the sight shocked them all, even Shepard who had lived through Elysium couldn't believe what awaited for them in that first room.

In front of the three stunned team mates was a hallway, littered with bodies. Cerberus had made a stand here but to no avail. There was blood splattered all over the walls and the dead men and woman were laying around the edges, some peppered with bullets and others sliced open with some sort of bladed weapon. The two marines were barely stomaching it, they had no idea how Tali was dealing with the sight. "Commander…whoever did this was coming out, look at the way the bodies are spread. Whoever locked the door to this base did all of this….so we must be dealing with a traitor right? I mean he came from the inside, locked the doors and then went back in" Kaidan appealed to Shepard, trying to make sense of this all. It was a mess and it was all fresh, the blood was still dripping down the walls and the bodies weren't even cold. They had only just missed this massacre.

"That must be it Kaidan, otherwise I have no idea…but this is just happened and those gun shots we heard earlier came from deeper in the base" Shepard quickly replied, keeping a level head, he could never say he was used to this but Elysium had been just as horrific.

"Keelah…there's going to be more of this?" Tali squeaked, clearly she had been hoping this was the worst of it; her words filled the hallway with silence. The only noise filling the atmosphere was the occasional drip, blood dropping onto the armour of one of the dead Cerberus agents.

"Well….no time like the present" Kaidan finally said, filling the deathly silence in the room as he lifted his weapon back into his soldier, striking the door switch and letting the doors slide open again, the team quickly burst into the room. Covering all their angles and stopping at the sight that yet again beheld them.

It was a large room, much like the others they had found in their hunt for Cerberus. A central chamber with some sort of device in the middle of it, and littered all around were consoles, all facing towards the central square. There was no trace of a kinetic barrier in place this time but the presence of the Cerberus team was quickly noted. The bodies of scientists and soldiers alike littered all over the place. Dents in the walls and consoles showed that whatever had killed these men, it had thrown them into the walls and machines with such force that the metal had bent under their own body weight. They worked away around the chamber, Shepard up the middle and his squad mates up either side, the commander slowly walked towards the device sitting in front of him.

It was a containment unit; it had shackles and a seat. It had been housing…something, whatever it was…it was about the size of a human being but it had broken out of this unit. Whatever it was, it was strong, not as strong as a krogan but still strong. And after it had broken out, it had massacred everyone in this room, before grabbing a rifle and killing anyway in the hall behind them. Locking the doors to the base with an encryption that even made Tali think twice. 'Jesus…what the hell are we dealing with?' Shepard silently thought. Shepard's train of thought was suddenly broken by the sound of two loud "Clear!"s

"Ok then team, let's get going, this base has more to it and we need to find out what happened here. Even for Cerberus…this is brutal" Shepard solemnly added, it was true. They had done terrible things to good people but these men and woman had been beaten, shot and ripped to death by something fast, strong and intelligent. He only hoped to god that whatever it was, he could reason with it and that it was on their side.

The squad moved slowly towards to the door at the back of the room, weapons aimed straight at the door as they edged closer and closer, stopping and tensing up as a loud, boom reverberated through the walls of steel. "Double time it people!" shouted Shepard, his squad bursting through the door to find the hallways relatively clean. The occasional bullet hole in the walls but no bodies, they quickly made their way down the hallway to the fork in the walkway. "Kaidan stay here, make sure nothing sneaks up on us. Tali you're with me" Shepard and Tali quickly stormed up to the door in front of them, smoke seeping through the slightly ajar door, the explosion bending the door and not letting it shut completely. They quickly forced it open and instantly regretted it, the sight of what must have been the Cerberus scientists in front of them…well what was left of them. Blood was smeared all over the room, the explosion was huge and the resulting mess was the only evidence anyone had even been there. Shutting the door as fast as they opened it, they stepped back in shock. Tali was barely holding herself together, all this blood, the tiny pieces of people splattered all throughout the base was taking its toll and she took a minute to lean over the railing, composing herself again.

Shepard quickly made his way back to Kaidan, tapping him on the shoulder as they slowly walked to the remaining door. "Bad?" inquired the biotic.

"You have no idea Kaidan, and you honestly don't want to know" quickly replied Shepard, looking at Kaidan to show how serious he was behind his helmet. "Now come on, last room. Computer mainframe…let's hope whatever we find is still in one piece" The two men walked up to the door, smacking the release button and raising their weapons as they stormed in. The sound of Tali's footsteps behind them as she caught her, taking her place in-between the two alliance soldiers as she raised her shotgun.

In the middle of the room was the base's main computer, and tapping away at the console was a single figure. Without turning around to look at the 3 heavily armed individuals behind him he said just 5 words, his fingers still working on the terminal as he stared at the screen in front of him.

"About time you caught up"


	3. A New Recruit

Shepard couldn't believe what he was seeing, none of them could. Whoever this was had torn his way through this base, and here he was standing in front of them. Barely even recognising that there were three people aiming weapons straight at his back as he tapped away at the holo-pad, humming quietly to himself as he stared straight up at the screen. The sound of beeping emanating from the computer and filling the silence in the room before finally Shepard broke the silence.

"Identify yourself, now!" the commander spoke forcefully to the figure, his command being responded by the man looking back at them over his shoulder. His eyes barely visible through his long, messy hair and his overgrown facial hair, clearly Cerberus had no interest in keeping up this man's appearance but that wasn't what really bothered him. Through the thick brown hair, he swore the man's eye looked red, not bloodshot…but his pupil was actually red. His train of thought broken as the man turned back to the screen.

"You first N7" the man replied, clearly unthreatened by the three

Shepard was about to ask how the man knew that, catching himself as he remembered N7 was plastered on his armour. Thanking god he had caught his mistake before he even made it. The situation was tense, he could tell both Tali and Kaidan had no idea what to make of this, so the commander was going to handle this. Hopefully no one else had to die today. "I'm Commander Shepard, Alliance Navy. This is Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko and Tali'Zorah nar Rayya."

"Oh my name really isn't important, it hasn't been for a very long time now Shepard. But as for your real question, friend or foe?" he stated, reaching into the side of his jeans and throwing a surgical scalpel down into the ground at his feet, the metal vibrating like a tuning fork briefly "I'm friendly enough, the Quarian was proof enough that you're not Cerberus, and if you're not Cerberus….well…as long as you don't shoot at me I'm friendly" breathing deeply at the end of his sentence before he started to hum and tap his foot, his omni-tool lighting up around his arm.

Shepard slowly lowered his weapon, the rest of his squad doing the same but keeping their gaze straight at the man's back. He was far enough away for them to react if he tried anything and they were fully expecting him too, no matter what Shepard did, they trusted him with their lives…but the main had torn open 30 or more soldiers and scientists. Without armour, with a single rifle he took from one of the soldiers he had killed, and a scalpel.

Then a question hit the biotic like a sledgehammer, this man had no armour. Not one single piece and he didn't have a scratch on him. "Commander, this guy's a biotic!" immediately raising his weapon back at the man's back "He has no armour and no shielding, and look at him! He's not got a single scratch on him! He must have bar..." the Lieutenant was suddenly cut off.

The man was laughing, chuckling to himself as he tapped at the console before spinning around and leaning back against the giant computer. "A biotic?...seriously? Good guess Mr Alenko but nope. Try again team. The jackpot is just to die for" a smile forming on the man's face, partly obscured by his shaggy beard. "tell you what, I'll even give you a clue and it's really good one" he then stood up straight and slid his hands down his chest, along the shirt Cerberus had left him in "The holes in this shirt are not a fashion statement" again chuckling to himself at the end of his sentence before his omni-tool lit up and started flashing.

"AHA! All done, now just to purge everything on the system" his hand quickly moving back to the console before he was stopped by the commander shouting

"STOP! Don't move!" Their weapons flying back into their soldiers, who knew what data was on that terminal. It could prove invaluable to stopping anything like this ever happening again.

The man froze, his hand hovering over the console before it slowly rose back into the air along with his other hand, slowly stepping back from the console as the squad moved closer to the computer. "Ok….what suddenly got you all antsy? Nothing on there of interest anyway, just a few horrifying experiments that should never ever be allowed to leave this place…ever" emphasising the words horrifying and ever as loudly as he could.

"For all we know that computer could have data on Admiral Kahoku's death and you are currently an un-named "friendly". Maybe you're just cleaning up shop for Cerberus and this is all just a ruse" shouted Kaidan, accidently letting the Admiral's name slip in the heat of the moment. Shepard was about to berate the lieutenant, shut him up before he revealed anything else but the look in the mysterious man's face when he heard the name Kahoku.

"Kahoku's dead?" the man said quietly, looking down at the ground as he clenched his hands tightly "….how…how and when did he die?" his words, quiet and precise. Clearly the man knew the admiral in some capacity.

Shepard realised this man was no threat to Alliance security, the breaking in his voice showed that. Whoever he was he wasn't a Cerberus operative simply cleaning shop. "A few days ago, he was executed by Cerberus and the intel we found on his body led us here."

Sighing, the man turned around and leant back against the wall. He was eyeing up Shepard, looking dead into his eyes and again. Shepard saw them again. His eyes, they looked like Wrex's. His pupils were irises were deep red and his pupils were slits. The white of his eye surrounding the brilliant red colour, seemingly vibrating out of his skull.

"Thank you for not lying to me commander…." He finally said before retreating back into his own mind

'The old man never gave up' the man thought quietly to himself. "Christ ok look, there's nothing on Kahoku on that computer. Just experiments and data and some….morally questionable areas. You can do a diagnostic on the system, I was just wiping all the main copies and all that's left is to purge it. Kahoku was never mentioned" his voice was clear, his words concise. This man was not lying to Shepard and he knew it, but before he had a chance to say anything he was interrupted yet again.

"There's a man going 'round, taking names, and he decides who to free, and who to blame. So Shepard…..are you the man?" his voice serious "because I want to be free N7, and….guns and biotics won't stop me. You saw the mess I left out there, and there are only three of you. So…what will it be? Am I to blame or will you set me free?"

The commander was stunned, unsure of what to make of this situation. This man was lethal, dangerous and clearly desperate to get out. He was right, they couldn't stop him. Three people wouldn't be enough even with all their skills combined. Today was the day this prisoner walked free but…but what if he could be used? He was lethal, he was dangerous but the commander had a krogan on his ship. This was a risky path to tread, but an extra hand on his mission would be welcome, and it could get everyone out of this hellhole alive.

"What if I strike you a deal? You come with me, help me complete my mission and I'll destroy all the data in that computer" Shepard said, lowering his weapon and noting the look of surprise on Kaidan's face. A look he was sure Tali was sharing behind her helmet. He was slightly surprised the red eyed man had exactly the same look.

Laughing filled the room again "Seriously? You're seriously asking me to join you? Look no offence but did your parents drop you on your head a little too often as a child?" the man couldn't believe what he was hearing, a minute ago these people had been ready to riddle him with metal. Not that he really cared but he was still amazed.

"Look all I know is this. You are clearly capable. You are desperate to get out of here and you haven't tried to kill me yet. Hell you even looked distressed at the news of Admiral Kahoku dying. I don't know who you are or what you are but I do know this. You're not my enemy and I'm giving you a chance to get out" Shepard stated as a matter of fact, and he was right. Even Tali and Kaidan knew it, Shepard was right. This man could help. Not only had he torn his way through heavily armed guards but he was clearly a talented hacker. His encryptions had slowed Tali for a couple of minutes and he was valuable. His methods….could be straightened out but Shepard knew it. This man was necessary to his mission. "But I would like to know you're name, it's getting awkward dancing around this whole nameless situation"

'He's serious…..he's deadly serious….but he's right…4 years I've been shut up and this is a chance to get out' he chuckled again at his own thoughts, shaking his head before standing up "…..my name isn't important…but you can call meeee….." pausing for a moment, clearly struggling to come up with something before finally speaking again "Feral. Call me Feral" extending his hand towards Shepard's and shaking it.

"Welcome aboard then Feral, don't make me regret this though. I do have a krogan back on my ship and he'd be more than obliged to space you if I'm wrong" Shepard smiled as he said it, only half serious. He was sure the krogan would love to throw him out anyway.

Feral laughed again, gripping Shepard's hand tightly, "he can try N7, he can try" finally releasing Shepard's hand. Leaving the commander considering the possibility that he was in fact fully capable of handling a krogan by himself. "Well then, I'll leave you to purge this computer. I trust you'll keep your word Shepard, I just need to gather some of my things. A locker in the hall is full of them and I just want a few of them" Feral simply stated walking towards the door to the room, leaving Shepard to re-join his squad. Nodding at Tali to start the purge before converging back to his squad, the door hissing shut behind him.

Feral walked back into the main hall, staring at his once containment unit. Shepard's team must have been the reason for the staff's panic; he chuckled as he walked towards the unit with his belongings. The staff's rushed attempt at shutting this place down had caused a power fluctuation, a brief second in which his containment seat was transformed into just a piece of metal. He had easily broken through it….and then…well….the rest was simply revenge. The years of torment, the experiments on him, what they had turned him into….he let them know exactly what he had done. He had no regrets over it, they deserved it, and at least he had been kind enough to make it quick.

The unit was locked, obviously. Growling under his breath he quickly looked back to check that Shepard's team were still in the computer room, his suspicions confirmed he suddenly brought his fist into the metal door. Instantly bending the metal, something he had gotten used to over his many years in captivity, his experimental enhancements were finally proving useful.

Opening the cabinet, he looked into it, his stuff….after so many years of watching it being carted around it was within his reach again. Most of it was junk, Cerberus had destroyed most of it trying to figure out who he was. His old omni-tool was ruined, along with everything on it, the one he had taken off a scientist was useful for now but he wanted to get a new one as soon as he could. No, nothing in here was worth taking except for one simple item; his dog tags. He reached in and took them, holding them in his hands as he slowly stroked over his name. His name?...no, not anymore. They had made him something else. Whoever that man was, he's dead now.

Feral sighed, pocketing the dog tags into his jeans before bolting upright, spinning on the spot a noise behind him bringing him to full alert 'How did Shepard miss him? HOW DID I MISS HIM?...Fuck' 

- back with Shepard's team, minutes before- 

"I still can't believe he quoted Cash" snorted Kaidan, as he stood back with Shepard, waiting for Tali to give the all clear on the purge

"Cash?" inquired Tali, looking up briefly from the odd comment from the Lt.

"Johnny Cash, human singer from over a century ago. Not many people still listen to him but he's a classic" replied Kaidan "He quoted the man comes around, good song, very different to the techno stuff you usually hear now"

"Wait wait wait, he tore his way through this base without armour, cryptically hinted that the holes in his shirt were from bullets and had eyes that looked like Wrex's and you're most surprised that he quoted Johnny Cash?" Shepard couldn't help but laugh, of all the things for Kaidan to pick up on it had been the most normal occurrence of the day

"I saw his eyes as well, what do you think they did to him Shepard?" asked Tali, quiet concern in her voice. She had seen Cerberus' activity in the other bases and if this man had been one of their experiments, she dared think what had happened to him

"I don't know Tali, whatever it is he'll have to tell us. All the data has just been purged" gesturing to Tali's omni-tool as it flashed before suddenly snapping his head towards the door. A familiar sound reverberated through the steel of the walls. Gun fire. "BACK TO THE HALL! MOVE! NOW!" Shepard shouted, grabbing his weapon and bursting through the doors. His squad storming behind him as fast as possible, all three of them exploding through the door and not for the first time that day, what they say stunned them all.

Feral was breathing heavily, growling angrily at the now limp, bloody Cerberus soldier in his hand. A soldier they had obviously both missed in the heat of battle, heavily wounded but not quite dead but that wasn't it. The gun fire hadn't been from a one sided fire fight, the soldier clutching a pistol in his now dead hands, three fresh smoking holes in the centre of Feral's chest, his shirt smouldering from where the bullets had ignited the cloth as it passed through. He had no barrier, no shields. He shouldn't have been moving let alone standing up, hell…..he shouldn't even have been able to reach the man and yet here he was. Clutching the dead man in one hand before letting his body crumple back to the ground.

Still panting he looked up at the team in front of him, "What?" Feral growled, he wasn't appreciating seeing guns pointing straight at him. The way they were looking at him, and then it hit him. They were staring lower than his eyes, following their gaze he looked down and saw it. The bullet holes in his shirt. "Well then…..this is awkward" he coughed, trying to turn their attention away from the blaringly obvious question that he was now dreading.

"Keelah….how…how are you still alive?" Tali managed to finally stutter out, the words lingering in the air, all three of them contorting their gaze as they noticed that not only was he alive. But each and every hole in his shirt had something in common, a patch of unbroken skin. He had been shot, but there was no trace of it, no wound, and no blood. Nothing, just a series of scorched holes in his shirt.

Feral sighed, there was absolutely no way of getting past this line of questioning. He was either going to answer them or he'd never get out of here. Glancing down at the ground, up at the ceiling and to the walls. Trying to look anywhere but at the three confused, armed people standing in front of him. "Ok…ok so….maybe I'm…." he sighed again, how do you explain what happened to him. How do you explain it without telling them the whole thing?

"I already told you that they were conducting experiments here, and I guess by now you have guessed I was one of them." He looked at them, expecting a response but instead seeing confused looks "as if my eyes weren't clues enough and yes these are my eyes, red and all. Their experiments….made me….able to regenerate like a krogan, except I can do it hell of a lot faster ipso facto, bullets do fuck all to me in the long run. There is some other stuff as well but we can save that for later" he finally got it out, dodging the question as much as he could, smiling awkwardly at the squad. Hoping this would end their questions, if it was only a brief interlude in the barrage to come.

"How? And why? Why bother? ", Kaidan asked, his voice full of disbelief. His brain refusing to believe what his eyes were seeing.

Feral sighed, rubbing his brow. His long hair getting in the way slightly and his beard tickling his lips as he rubbed his face. ' damn I need a shave' once again snorting to himself before looking back up at the confused humans and quarian. "How? Fuck knows, you'd have to ask a scientist and….do I honestly look like one?" gesturing to himself again, he knew that'd shut them up straight away. Of course he knew details on how, he had lived it but it really wasn't worth discussing. He just wanted to leave. "and as for why? I just took 3 rounds straight to the chest and I'm not even phased by it. I think that should answer your question. God knows why but I guess Cerberus wanted super-soldiers. Luckily though I'm the only one, something to do with genetics I honestly don't know"

Feral just sat back against one of the destroyed consoles and stared at the three people in front of him, "look you clearly have a boat load of questions to ask me but can it wait? I'm still going to come with you and the only difference now is you know I'm damn hard to kill, which honestly works in your favour. Whatever your mission is, I'm sure a soldier who can take rounds and keep going is slightly invaluable. Plus you know I'm good with software so….can we go?...please? You have questions to ask me and I still need to be briefed on your 'mission'"

Shepard finally nodded; the truth was he wanted to get out of there too. He had a headache, the questions were just piling up by the second and the smell of the dead wasn't helping anything. "Fine, let's get back to the Mako. Did you get everything you wanted from your locker?" He quickly asked, unsure if Feral had even had time to check. Feral simply nodded in response, clearly itching to get out of here.

"Ok then, let's get out of here everyone" he said finally, walking towards the entrance as fast as he could. Calling joker for extraction the moment he got back out into the open again. The fresh air was a godsend; it finally cancelled out the smell of the dead inside the base. He had questions, lots of questions. Who was Feral, where did he come from, what exactly was he capable of and if he was ever going to completely open up about his experiences in the Cerberus base? 

- Back aboard the SSV Normandy, 3 hours later – 

Shepard was back in his quarters, finally out of his armour and he was thankful for it. The armour was tight fitting and it always felt good to get it off again, even if the mission had been less eventful in terms of combat than it could've been. But the report was bugging him, what could he even say? He had no idea and he still wasn't sure about their newest member.

Feral was clearly capable, but there were some hidden clues in his words. He had expressed a wish to be briefed and his knowledge of the admiral pointed towards him having a military background, plus he was a talented hacker, he could've been part of the Alliance. The possibility that he was a former Cerberus agent still stood, but he clearly had no loyalty to them now if that had been the case. There was however, a lingering doubt over Feral's mental condition.

Dr. Chakwas was insistant on doing a health check on him when he came on board, he refused insisting that it was pointless. Shepard knew it was, but…he also knew it was pointless to argue with the doctor. She would have her examination whether Feral had to be strapped down or not, but that wasn't the issue. The moment he had seen those tables, the machines. Feral had frozen, bolt upright with panic in his eyes. It was a momentary flicker but it was there, what had Cerberus done to him? Hopefully he would be able to find out but right now, this report was going nowhere.

The commander decided to leave it for another time, it could wait. He was a spectre after all. Quickly leaving his room he entered the mess hall, hearing the group of marines plus Garrus, Ashley and Liara. They were huddled around the table all facing Kaidan and Tali, clearly the story of their newest addition had reached them all and they were eager to hear it. It was clearly providing for a good story, the rowdy marines were barely saying a word. An eerie silence in the once buzzing mess hall as they all just listened intently to the story.

"Wait…he walked off 3 gunshots to the chest? Just walked them off?" Garrus was the first to break the silence, his voice vibrating as his mandibles flared slightly with his question

"Like it was nothing, we arrived after it happened but it was only about 15 seconds. He'd killed the guy before we got there" replied Kaidan. Shepard noticed he was having fun telling this story, it was like some sort of horror story around the campfire, inwardly snorting to himself as he stepped up to the table, joining the group.

"Hey commander" Ashley quickly said, before quickly adding. "So is this all true? I mean Kaidan has some pretty crazy stories but even Tali is backing him up this time"

"Every word Ash, I don't fully get it either but it's all true. We all saw it and he's here on the ship now so I'm pretty sure it wasn't just one massive LSD trip….not that I'd know of course" Shepard joked, earning chuckles from the crew, and some confused looks from the aliens around the table "It's a drug, a bit like red sand" he added, the non-humans finally getting it.

"He looked like a mess though, everyone on board is so clean and he just looked so rough and ragged" Liara said, still trying to wrap her quite brilliant mind around it, it was all so impossible and yet three people she highly respected were calling it fact. She knew her comment was irrelevant in the grand scheme, but it was all she could muster up.

Ashley snorted "What? You don't like rough, ragged men Liara?" she teased, it was juvenile but she got her desired effect, the poor Asari blushed up a storm and stumbled over some words before Tali interrupted.

"Who would? I mean, he looked unclean and that hair was just everywhere. Why would anyone like that?" Tali questioned, missing the point of Ashley's comments completely before a voice suddenly appeared behind them.

"Talking about me? You know some people might take offence Tali" the voice stated

The entire table looked up or turned around to look at the origin of the comment, and looked in silent shock for a moment. There they were, those deep red eyes looking back at them. Exactly as Kaidan had described, and they knew exactly what he meant. His irises and pupils looked exactly like a smaller version of Wrex's eyes, but that wasn't what really got their attention. Feral's face was finally clear to see, the man had shaved and gotten a haircut whilst in Chakwas' loving care.

Shepard was surprised, he hadn't known what to expect but even he silently admitted. Feral was handsome, his brown hair was cut down and while shorter than it had been, he had kept it longer than any soldier would have it. Just enough to cover his head completely and his fringe ended in a slight point over his left eye. His skin was relatively pale, clearly from his time indoors but his skin was flawless, not a crack or blemish on it. A side effect of his regeneration assumed, as were his eyes. They were the kicker; his eyes were even more obvious now. The red standing out against the whites of his eyes and his skin.

"…..ok….stop staring?...please? I just had a haircut and a shave….big fucking whoop" Feral slowly said, snapping everyone out of their surprised daze. "Thank you….that was…..weird" uncomfortably shifting around in his standard alliance suit, Chakwas had leant one of the same uniforms both Kaidan and the commander wore. "Commander, Chakwas said you'd give me somewhere to set up" Feral shrugged hoping to get away from the stares, he'd been stared at before but this was the first time it had been soldiers instead of scientists.

"Ah, right. Follow me Feral. I'm sure we can find somewhere in the lower deck, your software skills could be useful in the engine room" Shepard stated as he started to walk towards the elevator, Feral walking up to it alongside him before stepping inside the elevator with the commander.

"Err, Shepard?"

"Yes Feral?"

"What the hell just happened out there?" Feral asked, only to be answered by Shepard laughing as the elevator doors shut.

The mess hall was left in silence as they dull humming of the elevator slowly moved downwards.

"Sooo….I guess now that he's not all messy and hairy and stuff you'll have lots of fun working with him in engineering, huh Tali?" Garrus almost purred, earning a loud snort from Ashley.

"Shut up Garrus, I still have my shotgun you know" she snapped back quickly, the crew, Garrus included, laughing as they went back to their duties. Even though Garrus had been joking, Tali knew whatever happened. It would be very interesting.


	4. A Story told and a New Friend

Shepard was showing Feral around the lower deck of the Normandy, getting him acquainted with the various crew members down there including Wrex, the requisitions officer and engineer Adams. The meeting with Wrex had been quick, the stories clearly hadn't reached him yet and Wrex quickly dismissed the human as yet another squishy meat shield. Feral laughed at that comment, and he had a smile on his face for the rest of his brief tour.

"So that's it Feral, and this is your terminal" The commander gestured towards the computer screen, it was on the left hand side of the middle section. "From this terminal you can access most of the Normandy's software systems, which is your field right?" Shepard stepped to one side as Feral approached the terminal, typing away for a brief moment before looking back up at Shepard.

"Yup, I'm your software guy…and you're borderline psychotic weapon...and you're 'meat shield'" wiggling his head slightly with his last words, laughing again as he remember Wrex's words. "But yh, I can clean this system up, hopefully you're systems will be running a lot smoother by the time I'm done. Just let me reacclimatise…I have been locked up for 4 years" he leaned back against the railing and stared towards the engine room doors.

"So Shepard, I'm sure you have many questions to ask me and I'm sure I'll answer some truthfully and some with snide, brushing remarks. I will answer them but first things first. This ship isn't standard human, unless things have changed a lot since I've been on ships. So what's the deal?" Feral looked dead at the commander, his eyes unwavering "Oh and commander don't lie, I can smell a lie from miles away, and yes I mean that literally, and no I won't tell you how until you answer my question soooo…..yh" Feral rotated his hand around in the air, waiting for Shepard to talk

Shepard shook his head, chuckling off the comment about smelling a lie before realising Feral was dead serious. If he lied to this man, he knew he would be instantly caught. He had no idea how but it was just his gut feeling, and Shepard's gut had yet to let him down. He sighed "Ok then, no lies Feral. You're right this ship isn't standard. This is the SSV Normandy, a human and turian joint project and a state of the art infiltrating cruiser" he noted the surprised look on Feral's face

"Human-Turian joint project?" his voice was filled with surprise

"Yes Feral… is that going to be a problem? I don't need any more xenophobia on this ship and if it's going to be an issue I need to know now." Shepard was stern, he could handle Ashley but he really didn't need more.

Feral just responded by laughing, again. "It wasn't an alien race that locked me up for 4 years and turned me into what I am Shepard. Trust me I have nothing against non-human races, it's just….when I left relations were….sketchy at best. Just surprised to see we're making bridges" Feral shrugged the question off but his answer had clearly satisfied Shepard, who then moved on with his story

"Good point" Shepard just shook his head, it wasn't the greatest reasoning in the world to trust aliens but he was right. It had been other human beings that had transformed him. "The Normandy is my ship and I'm on a mission for the council as the first human Spectre, we're hunting down a rogue spectre named Saren Arterius. He attacked Eden Prime a few weeks ago and we're hunting him and he geth army down" Shepard simply stated

Now it was Feral's turn to be stunned, if it wasn't for the fact that both his eyes and nose were telling him Shepard was telling the truth. He'd have never believed him. A human spectre? Eden Prime was attacked? Geth AND a rogue spectre? Feral couldn't hide the look on his face, his eyes and brow contorted in a surprised grimace before he finally spoke up. "Here I am thinking I coined myself something nice and simple, should've known. Nothing is ever that simple huh?" sighing as he looked back up at Shepard

"Never seems that way, and I doubt it'll simple at any point in the future" Feral's new commander replied, clearly amused by his response. "Still on board for this?"

"Oh yh you can count me in, just…..just wow…so this is big right? Of course it's big, they made you a spectre." Feral snorted "Couldn't have picked anyone better though, hell I still remember the stories they told about Elysium" he grew quiet and briefly retreated into his own head 'hell it's one of the reasons I joined the marines'

"So that's the mission Feral, find and stop the bad guy and save the universe" smiling as he said it as he leaned back on the rail next to Feral. "So then, how about you? What's your story?"

Feral just snorted again, a smile forming on his face giving the commander an accidental peek at his slightly longer than normal canines "yh…I guess you earnt a little bit of a story Shepard" crossing his arms as he leant back, shoulders in line with his new commander's. "Pretty normal life until 4 years ago, born and grew up on Earth. England first then south west America. Normal parents, normal life and then Cerberus got me. Then I spent 4 years in and out of various facilities and bases as they…..well….you can see what they did to me"

"What exactly can you do Feral? I've seen glimpses but I'm interested in knowing what exactly they changed" Shepard asked, his voice quiet. He knew that these were probably memories wanting to be forgotten.

"2 years….2 years I was their lab rat. I'm barely human anymore, I just look it…apart from the eyes and some of my teeth" Feral opened his jaw and rolled his tongue along his canines. "The teeth are just a side effect but the eyes…god I don't even know what they are I just know my vision is way better than it should be and I have…I guess cat-like night vision, handy in combat but it's a pain in the ass trying to sleep though" Feral laughed again, the human in him still alive as he complained about the little things.

"Then of course there are the rest of my senses; smell, hearing and taste are all radically improved. When I told you not to lie to me because I could smell it? I meant it. You don't notice but little things change when you lie because you're scared of being caught in the lie. Adrenaline gets pumping and that's why your heart starts beating faster. I can smell the adrenaline and I can hear the heartbeat, luckily it's only when I'm concentrating on it. It's the whole…close your eyes and you can hear things more clearly thing, I just concentrate on the sense I want to use and ipso facto….I can hear or smell you lie"

"I'll have to take you along to council meetings and when I have to take you to Udina, sniffing out a lie around politicians might drive you crazy though" Shepard laughed, earning a loud laugh in response from Feral.

"Trust me; you don't need my nose to know their lying. Politicians are born bull-shitters, everything they say is fabricated…..plus it really might just make me gag" Feral said chuckling some more, earning some glances from the rest of the engineering crew as they wondered what was so funny.

"Anyway….and then the really big thing. All the stuff before this was just….accidental from what I heard, they never meant for me to be able to do this it just sort of happened along with the main goal. Cerberus understood that the krogan are possibly the toughest species out there, but Cerberus being Cerberus. They didn't want anything to do with them, so instead they had the wonderful idea to try and make the human equivalent using krogan genes. Specifically the regeneration one and again…you'd need a scientist to explain this, they kept me generally in the dark but some of them were very much in love with their own voices. Loved to tell me what a success I would be, how humanity would benefit from this….Shepard they needed to die…every single one of them" Feral was growling, a low vibrating growl emanating deep from his throat as he tightened his grip on the railings.

"Yh…..they did, so if that only took 2 years? What about the last 2 years?" trying to move Feral on, noticing his grip was crushing the metal railing

Feral sighed, finally releasing the now squashed railing and placing his hands on an unbent piece of the bar. "The genes they conditioned me with…..the survival rate was in the toilet. Most of the 'subjects' died, I was the only survivor. Something about the right….ah what did they call them?" pushing his fingers to his forehead before snapping them "AH! Single nucleotide poly….morphisms…or something, either way I had the right ones…..so once it was confirmed I had it…..they tested it and Shepard how do you honestly think you test a regeneration factor?" Feral looked over at Shepard, hoping Shepard would get the hint

He did….and the thought was horrifying. How do you test if someone can rapidly heal from gun shots? From any sort of attack? How would an organisation like Cerberus test it? The answer was simple….put him in all of those situations. Shoot him, stab him. Hack and slash to see how much could be taken…..they tortured him. Would wait for him to heal and then start over again.

"…..Jesus….Feral….how long?" Shepard was speechless, no wonder Feral had panicked at seeing a medical lab. How long had been subjected to one as scientists poked at him.

"It was 6 months before they were fully convinced and happy with the modifications they made…..turns out that while I can heal most things very quickly. I only heal like a normal human being, just thousands of times faster. My bones still break as easily as other humans and I can't grow back appendages or limbs. The skin just closes up faster" Feral raised up his left hand, wiggling his little finger for Shepard to see, it had been cut off at the knuckle.

"They hoped it was going to grow back but it never did, just closed up and healed up and that was it. The broken bones were starting to annoy them as well. It still took me a few days to heal any serious fracture so they…..implanted a titanium allow into the hollow space of just about every single bone in my body. The bone will crack, but the alloy holds it in place. Much faster repair and I'm moving again in about 10 minutes after a femur fracture now. The smaller bones were just given a small weaving over the outside to hold any cracks in place" Feral sighed, pausing as he let it all sink in

"Basically commander, I'm tough as hell to kill. But I'm not invincible. I can't grow back anything that gets cut off and if I'm blown to pieces I won't just regrow. A krogan is stronger than me but I can still hold my own…..I can survive bullets to the head though. After the testing was over, Cerberus tried to insert a control chip, but…the regeneration factor meant I closed up faster than they could operate so they…tried to dispose of me. That's why I was locked up for 2 years….they still thought I'd eventually prove useful. Soldiers that can take bullets to the head and walk away are apparently 'valuable'" Feral quietly laughed, finishing his story at long last. It felt good to talk about it, but god….god he just wanted to forget.

"That's it for now Shepard, maybe I'll tell you more later but for now, what's our next move?" Feral quickly said, pushing himself forward and looking back at the commander. The quiet voice gone, he was back to his confident self again…at least for now

Shepard found himself smiling again; it reminded himself of him after the Skylian Blitz. What he'd see had been horrifying, but he didn't let it stop him being himself. Feral was the same, he just wanted to live. "We're heading to the Citadel, we need to pick up some things and check in with a few people"

"Perfect, I need to grab some gear anyway. I need a new omni-tool this Cerberus one has the smell of death on it" shaking his hand as he chuckled "plus I need some armour and a couple of other things" Feral noticed the look on Shepard's face at the word armour, "Hey! Just because I can survive bullets to the face doesn't mean it doesn't hurt like fuck. I just need a few pieces anyway, enough to cover my torso and the fronts of my legs. Other than that I like the feeling or freedom." Feral just smiled

"Fair enough then, I'll send you with Tali to get your equipment. She knows where the right stores are and I figure you'll need to get to know her anyway. You are working with her down here" Shepard smiled as he pushed himself off the railing, walking back towards the exit to the room. "I'll let you know when we're getting close, until then…think you can manage with the omni-tool you have?"

Feral giggled as he stepped back up to his console "Yh, but if you see me with a nose peg on my nose you'll know why. Later Commander" Feral looked back up briefly "Hey Shepard, don't tell anyone else. Please?" He looked back around briefly at the commander, who replied with a simple nod.

Sighing loudly to himself, he looked back at the computer. Cracking his knuckles and tuning out the noise behind him as he immersed himself in his work. 'Christ this system is filled with crap' laughing to himself as he started to clean up the system. 

- 1 hour later, Citadel Space – 

"ETA to the Citadel, 10 minutes. Hey Feral, Commander said you should join us in the cockpit" Joker's voice rang out through the ship. 'Damn, how long have I been at this?' Feral stood back from his terminal, stretching out his arms and legs slightly as he started to move again. He slowly started to make his way out of the engine room, he was happy with the work he had gotten done. True most of it had been acquainting himself with the Normandy's systems but after that he started to scrub out all the junk code. The computer systems were already running slightly faster, but he still had plenty of work to do and then maintaining it would be a challenge.

Stepping back into the elevator, he caught a glimpse of a small huddle around the Mako. Garrus was telling Wrex and the requisitions officer Kaidan's story, he managed to make out a few words but before he had enough time to concentrate on listening in the elevator doors had already shut. He already had a feeling that once Wrex found out what the 'human' was actually capable of, something would kick off. He remembered the marine's tales of the Krogan, they always wanted to prove their strength, and he was designed to be capable of holding his own against a Krogan….whatever happened….it was going to be painful.

Once the elevator final stopped moving he stepped out and walked up onto the main deck, walking past the turian inspired CIC and up towards the cockpit, he had instantly noticed that his presence was drawing stares. Not that he really cared but it still felt unnerving, the image of scientists looking down at him when he was their test subject still plagued his mind. He was so deep in thought he never even noticed her.

"So Feral ever seen the citadel?" a small, slightly synthesised voice came from behind him

He practically leapt out his skin, bolting around to look at the origin of the voice, his eyes wide in surprise as he stared with his shocked expression before breathing out loudly "Jeez Tali…where did you come from?" he looked at her eyes, they were behind her tinted helmet but he could still clearly see the two glowing orbs.

"Erm…I followed you up the stairs from the mess hall" pointing back towards the door "…are you alright? I didn't mean to scare you" rubbing her hands nervously and looking down at her feet

"What? Oh…OH! No! You just surprised me that's all….I tend to get…pretty involved in my own thoughts…..old habit. 4 years with nothing but your thoughts….makes your thoughts pretty loud." Feral said, smiling awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck "soooo…..cockpit?" he gestured towards the front of the ship.

"Mhm "simply came the reply from the small woman, she was still slightly unnerved around him. His eyes and what he had done back on Nepheron. The fact he was slightly awkward with social interactions made her feel better though, she wasn't totally confident around the crew yet either.

"Well then, ladies first" Feral stepped aside, letting Tali step past him before he followed her up. He may not technically be human and he'd spent most of his adult life in a cage but he still believed in manners….especially after spooking someone….especially if you were going to be working with that person for the entire mission you're on.

Feral and Tali walked up the cockpit to find Joker talking to the commander, Tali only slightly ahead of him before Shepard finally turned around. "Ah good, you're both here. Feral have you ever seen the Citadel?" The red eyed simply shook his head "Well then, port side window" The commander pointed to his right with his thumb and stood back as Feral stepped up.

'Holy crap' Feral's eyes were wide, a small grin appearing on his face. It was huge; it made all of the stations he had ever served on look tiny. Each arm of the superstructure was practically a city and there were five of them. Words couldn't describe what he was seeing, so in typically human style he did the first thing he thought off.

He wolf whistled. "That…..that is pretty damn impressive"

Even Tali was staring wide eyed at the structure, she'd seen it before but she was still so used to the flotilla that the Citadel still amazed her but she was more surprised that Feral had never seen it. "You've never seen the citadel?" she cocked her head to one side looking at this increasingly strange human being

Feral just looked back at her, cocking his head so her eyes were level with hers. "Well….no, I mean I spent the last 4 years as a science experiment and I'd only left earth 3 years before that…so…not much opportunity to see this place" he noticed that even the commander was looking at him, slightly surprised

"Wait…how old are you?" The commander said

"I'm 25….is that important?" he turned back before he could see the looks on their faces. He had always looked older than he was; he seriously hoped that it wouldn't be a problem.

Both Shepard and Tali were speechless; they had both figured he was older than that. The thought that he had only been 21 when Cerberus had kidnapped him was horrifying…..especially to Shepard. The details of Feral's experiences becoming increasingly horrifying with every revelation, when he considered that this man was 2 years younger than him.

Tali was speechless for another reason, she didn't know what Cerberus had done to him but she had seen the results. A 21 year old human being had been kidnapped and experimented on, and she was 22. Feral had been younger than her when he went missing, and she couldn't feel her heart drop for the man. She had only just managed to survive in the citadel before the commander had turned up and yet Feral had been through hell. She had seen the results of his hell, the bodies of the soldiers and scientists still fresh in her mind. Whatever had happened to him, it had driven him to that.

The silence was finally broken by Joker piping up "Wait you're only 25? Holy crap! If I had known Cerberus were looking to do that stuff I would've signed up earlier" his comment rewarded by the dead pan looks on Shepard and Feral's faces…he just assumed Tali was doing the same, he also swore he could hear Feral growling but he just brushed that off "What?...just saying, if I had to choose between Vrolik syndrome and being able to brush off gun fire to the chest, it's kind of a no brainer" shrugging as he turned back into his chair, muttering to himself.

'Damn it Joker, always got to open your mouth haven't you?' Shepard said nothing, simply shrugging off the Flight Lieutenants comment as he turned back to Feral who was still growling as he stared off into space. "When we dock I want you to go straight to the markets, you have my authority and I'm wiring credits to your accounts. Tali knows where to go so just follow her lead and pick out whatever you want within your budget" the commander's omni-tool lighting up briefly before Feral's lit up as well, pinging in recognition of the transfer

"No problem Shepard" Feral quietly said, the growl underlying his words "I'll be sure to pick out something really nice" a smile returning to the man's face, he clearly already knew what he needed.

"Good, oh and Feral?" the red eyed man looked up at the N7 as he walked off towards the CIC. "Don't break anything in there, last thing we need is a political shitstorm"

Feral just burst out laughing as he stood back up, the sound of Feral's giggling slowly fading out as Shepard went to get Kaidan and Garrus. They had business with Anderson, Kahoku's death needed to be announced and there was the outstanding issue of Feral. Shepard was sure he had a history and he needed to find it, Cerberus didn't just find him wandering around in space. 

- The Citadel, elevator leading to the markets – 

Feral was banging his head on the side of the elevator. "Are these things this slow for a reason Tali? Or does C-Sec just like dragging out the bodies of people who die from boredom?" Feral groaned, he hadn't escaped captivity just to be trapped in an elevator for the rest of his life.

Tali just giggled in response, Feral just looking at her questioningly although he had to admit it was pretty cute. The little quarian was very bubbly and it was pretty refreshing, he had enough serious, scientists to last him a life time. "Oh come on, gun shots are easy but an elevator? That's you're weakness? Don't worry I won't tell the Geth"

Feral smiled at that, actually smiled. "Yh well, I didn't escape one prison just to get stuck in another one. Though the company is nice" Feral leaned back against the edge of the elevator, sighing to himself. It had been 4 years of hell, but he still hadn't forgotten the rest of his squad. Keene, the captain…..O'Hare.

They were gone now, his friends were dead, but being aboard a crew again. It made him feel better, and his quarian companion was definitely helping. The Normandy was going to do him good. He could feel it.

Tali was actually surprised to hear Feral's comment, shuffling her 3 fingered hands together as she fidgeted slightly "You…you don't mind that I'm a quarian?" she slowly said, pain obvious in her voice

Feral looked at her, trying his best to decipher the hidden look on her face, he could only see one of her eyes but it was lidded. "Why would I?" he finally said, utterly oblivious to why she was even questioning it.

"Most people see my race as vagrants, thieves. I believe the word in your language is gypsies." Tali slowly said, her eyes still planted on the floor "even some of the Normandy's crew is suspicious of me being aboard that ship"

Feral instantly understood, she wasn't used to people being comfortable around her and why should she? The only person who had been truly good to her was Commander Shepard. On their way to the elevator they had talked...well…she talked and he just listened. She told him about her pilgrimage and how she had ended up on the Normandy. Feral sighed, he felt bad for the woman. He knew what it was like, once someone labels you its bloody hard to take it off.

"Tali you're the first quarian I've ever met, my knowledge of your race extends from what you've told me and that 300 years ago you created the Geth." Feral shrugged, "I can't judge what I don't know and so far I've seen nothing to suggest that you're anything but a good person"

Tali looked up at him, the significance of Feral's words was clearly lost on him but he had called her a person. Not a thing, not a quarian but a person. She smiled inside her helmet and her fidgeting mechanism stopped "….thank you Feral"

"Hey, in all honesty. Unless you lock me up for 4 years and experiment on me. There's really not a lot you could do to make me hate you" Feral smiled at her, earning a giggle from Tali

BING! "OH THANK GOD!" Feral threw his arms in the air, bouncing slightly on the spot as he waited for the doors to open, bolting out the moment he could. Sighing happily as he looked back "…sorry…..Erm…." Feral patted himself down, regaining his composure as best as he could as the woman just raised her eyebrow at him….at least that's what he assumed she was doing before Tali followed him out and walked past him

"C'mon Feral, let's get your gear before you embarrass yourself even more" she laughed, but not at him. She was enjoying his company more and more, maybe she was wrong about him. Feral was about to respond but just jogged back up to her, following her as she walked towards the markets. The arm of the citadel stretching out in front of the window beside them, it really was impressive. Feral could barely keep his eyes off it, until he noticed people staring but not at him. They were staring at Tali, he finally started to realise the significance of his words. Quarians really were treated as thieves, he mentally sighed as she walked along inside her.

They had entered the markets, Feral looked around. He had hoped he'd have a better idea of where he was going when they got there but the nameless stalls really didn't help, but Tali had clearly been here before. She knew exactly where to go and before too long, he had picked up a new omni-tool, a combat blade, a pistol and a rifle.

The combat knife was a small favourite of his, the scientists had him stay fit by fighting other creatures and he usually was just given a knife. He had grown fond of a bladed weapon and this one was perfect, a single serrated edge along the blade and it was perfectly balanced. His pistol and rifle were pretty standard, a decent high powered pistol with a rapid-fire assault rifle. They would do just fine for any long range situations. The last thing on his list was the combat armour, he didn't need an entire suit and he explained what he needed to the vendor Tali suggested. He was quickly taken back into the stock room to gather the pieces.

A chest piece, similar to 21st century Kevlar vests but made of the thinner material of the era. Shoulder pads that ran along the curve of his shoulders, covering his upper arms. Elbow pads and arm bracers which ended in a pair of fingerless gloves. As for his lower body, he needed far less protection. He obviously had a piece that attached to his vest and ran over his groin, he was already barely human…he didn't need to get that blown off. Then he had simple armour sections that covered his thighs and shins, with knee pads that all moved independently of each other. It would keep him flexible, keep him quick but the armour covered enough to keep him from getting too badly hit. Plus the kinetic shielding that came with it was strong, meaning he didn't need to worry about the backs of his legs or his head, the shield would stop anything from doing too much damage.

He fitted all the armour in place on his body, paying the vendor who then left him to gather his equipment properly. Fitting his omni-tool onto his left arm, briefly rubbing his stump of a little finger as it glowed into life. Perfect, he could tinker with the software later but right now, the lack of stench of death was good enough. Grabbing his combat knife he slowly pushed it into the sheath he had attached just below his right collar bone, the perfect placement for when he needed to wield both the knife and his pistol. He then shouldered his M-8 Avenger rifle, locking it onto the magnetic rails on his back. Picking up his M-5 Phalanx and placing it on the rail on his right thigh. Quickly inspecting himself to make sure it was all in place. He went to leave when he caught a glimpse of himself in a reflective wall and froze.

He looked at himself, how much he had changed in 4 years. His hair was darker and his skin was paler, a side effect of not seeing natural light in so very long. His eyes were blaringly obvious, the red standing out and he wondered how other people truly viewed him. He was used to them, they had been the only friendly eyes he had seen for those 4 painful years…..regardless, and they were his eyes now. What really caught his attention was his armour and uniform, he finally looked like the marine he had once been. He rubbed his hand over his back pocket, his dog tags sitting within them. "I'll make you proud guys…..this is all for you" Tearing his eyes away from his own image and walking back out into the market place.

"YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO BE HERE! You're probably just looking for something to steal!" a voice shouted from a small crowd of people to the one side of the market. It instantly caught his attention, whatever was happening was bad and when he heard a familiar voice he started storming towards them.

"WHAT? I wasn't doing anything! I was just waiting for my friend you bosh'tet!" shouted back Tali, the human had started accusing her out of the blue and she wasn't going to take it sitting down.

"Oh how typical of a bucket head! Resort to foul language. Why don't you just get out of here, you're 'friend' clearly isn't coming back. You honestly believe that a beggar like you could have friends?" the human snided, pushing the small quarian back

"Tha…that's not true!" Tali started rubbing her hands together, the words had stung her more than they should've. Feral couldn't really be her friend after such a short time, she wasn't even really sure if he was trustworthy yet. Her fidgeting started up and she started to shrink as the human seemed bigger and bigger, the crowd of humans, turians, volus and salarians starting to hum in agreement with the leader of the forming mob. Tali knew that eventually she'd just have to leave and hope Feral could find his own way back to the Normandy when suddenly a voice broke above the murmuring.

"HEY! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING ASSHOLE?" Feral barged his way through the crowd, Tali barely saw his face but it looked exactly like it had when they had caught him clutching the dead soldier after being shot. She had no love for the human, but she suddenly feared for his life.

Feral grabbed the man's collar, lifting him in the air and shoving him into a stack of crates the crowd had formed around. The man's feet hovering several inches in the air. Feral was a tall man, a couple of inches over 6 feet but he was holding the man above his own eye level. Glaring straight into his eyes with his furious, genetically modified irises. Growling every single word out, his teeth clenched and his knuckles turning even whiter as he gripped the man's clothing.

"Now then, it would appear you have been rather unkind to a friend of mine" Feral said slowly, enunciating every word slowly, a deep vibrating growl present as the crowd stood in utter silence, watching the scene unfold.

"T-the quarian?" the man said, his voice quaking in fear as he stared back into the angry red eyes glaring at him, shaking and jolting back as the man shouted again

"SHE HAS A NAME! DID YOU EVEN BOTHER ASKING WHAT IT WAS BEFORE YOU ACCUSED HER OF BEING A THIEF!" Feral slammed the man back into the crates, snarling even louder "next time you decide to gang up on an innocent person, that she may be working for a spectre" his words dripping with hate "and that she may have a heavily armed friend just around the corner" Feral dropped the man, who instantly collapsed to the ground. "Get out of here….NOW!" Feral roared, turning around and glaring at everyone in the crowd. No one questioned him, no one had even called C-Sec. This man's eyes were terrifying, fiery red and full of hate and it paralysed people in fear before he ordered them again

"I SAID GET!" he roared again, spitting slightly at the mob as they quickly turned and started to walk away from Feral and Tali. Feral was left standing there panting, wiping spit off his chin before leaning against a wall and breathing heavily to calm himself down.

Tali couldn't believe what had just occurred, a mob ganging up on her wasn't a first, but someone defending her was. Not once did Feral refer to her as a quarian, he had only ever said she or….friend. He had called her his friend. She had made friends on the Normandy; Shepard, Garrus and even Ashley were kind to her on occasion but Feral had just stormed into a crowd and scared a whole group of people away. She barely knew him and yet here he was, standing up for her. Her train of thought just kept going until suddenly...

"Are you ok? Tali? Are you ok?" Feral had a hand on her shoulder and was waving another in her face, instantly Tali blushed. She had been so deep in thought that she hadn't even realised that he was talking to her

"Y-yes I'm fine….thank you for that Feral" Tali looked up at him, standing up straight and brushing herself down slightly as she looked into his eyes. Those same eyes which had been so full of rage and hatred and anger only moments before, just looked so kind and calm.

Feral snorted to himself "Yh well, I hate bullies. Figured I'd lend you a hand" he smiled at her, his canines obvious as he grinned "I'm just glad you're feeling ok Tali" standing back up in front of her "Although…it's probably best we get out of here…..I get the feeling people won't come back here until I'M gone" Feral laughed, earning a small giggle from Tali

"Yh well, it was fun watching you shout Feral" Tali was starting to beam as they headed for the exit. Their walk turning into a brisk jog when they noticed someone was calling C-Sec, they didn't have to worry about it obviously, but Shepard had asked Feral not to cause trouble.

Eventually they came to a halt in the hallway leading to the elevator, leaning against the wall as they waited for the elevator to come back down, causing Feral to groan "Oh god not again" he whined, and slid down onto the ground, sitting with his back against the wall. "Maybe that's why I was so angry with that guy, maybe he made this bloody thing"

Tali just pushed her back against the wall and slid down next to Feral "He knew your only weakness and you couldn't have him leaking it out could you?" earning another laugh from Feral. The pair sat in silence for a moment

"Feral…really thank you so much for what you did back there. Not many people would defend a quarian they barely knew" she looked over at him, Feral tilting his head over to her slightly, smiling gently back at her

"Well like I said, you've been nothing but good to me Tali. I spent 4 years locked in a box and being experimented on. I am what I am now and I might as well use what they gave me defending my friends…otherwise what's the point?" he looked down at the ground and sighed "What they did to me was monstrous; I won't let them turn me into one"

Tali smiled at him through her helmet, she may not have known a lot about him but she knew that he was her friend. Someone who would defend her that publically could never be anything but that "you could never be a monster Feral, not after what you did for me" she smiled at him yet again. Feral just smiled back at her.

"Thank you Tali"

BING, the noise turned both of their heads towards the now opening elevator doors. Feral sighed as he stood up before turning to offer his hand to Tali. "if I'm going to be stuck in that thing again, I'm glad I'm with you Tali'Zorah" lifting her light frame easily off the ground when she took his hand in her own, before they both made their way into the elevator. Feral was happy, he had truly found a friend in the young woman even if he had to practically chew some poor bastard out to figure it out.

"Hey Tali?"

"Yes Feral?" the quarian looked over at him, smiling happily as the elevator doors started to close

"Let's take the stairs next time"

The door finally shut, sealing in the sound of the two squad mates laughing.


	5. Fun and Games in Port Hanshan

- Ambassador Udina's Office –

Shepard had been Anderson while Feral went with Tali, Garrus and Kaidan were sitting at the table as the two alliance soldiers talked; just talking amongst themselves as they waited for Shepard to finish talking to his old CO. Shepard had been telling the admiral everything, how they had found Kahoku's body and then how they went off to put the entire operation to bed. Finding Feral after he had torn his way through the base, the fact that Feral was now aboard the Normandy. He told Anderson what this man claimed he could do and how he was inclined to believe him.

Anderson just sighed, rubbing his brow. This was a mess, Kahoku's death was bad enough but the discovery of this super soldier….he didn't know what to make of it, he trusted Shepard's judgement but it was bad situation. From Shepard's story the man was clearly lethal, intelligent and possibly suffering from PTSD. Udina would have had a field day if he'd been there, that thought actually made him feel better about it, annoying the politician always brightened his day even if he knew it was juvenile.

"Shepard, are you sure you can trust him?" Anderson finally said, this was all that mattered. If Shepard trusted the Cerberus experiment then so would he

"Yes sir, until he does anything to make me thing otherwise. Feral can be trusted" Shepard stated, it was true after all. "There's another reason I came to see you about him though, I'm starting to suspect he might have had connections to the Alliance before Cerberus got him"

This caught Anderson's attention, his eyes snapping back up at the commander, the look on his face asking for Shepard to explain his suspicions

"His knowledge of computer systems is clearly well trained, he could just have been a computer hacker but he knows his way around a ships system too well. Then there's his knowledge of Admiral Kahoku, when we told him Kahoku had been killed. It sounded like he knew him Sir"

That last sentence really hit alarm bells in Andersons head. Kahoku had been killed by Cerberus and this unknown man knew him. He really hoped Shepard was right about this man possibly being Alliance, the alternative theories all suggested this man was a mole. "You honestly think that he could have been one of us?"

"I honestly can't say for certain sir, but the way he talks sometimes. He asked me to brief him on the mission. Civilians don't use that terminology, not even mercenaries tend to speak like that unless they were ex-military and he is far too young to be ex-military. All I'm asking is that you check, he said that Cerberus took him 4 years ago. Could Kahoku…"

"Wait…..4 years ago? He said that?" Anderson suddenly stopped the commander

"That's what he said sir" Shepard just nodded

"Kahoku openly suspected Cerberus was a problem a year ago, he said they had something to do with Akuze and then 2 years after that he had deployed an entire marine division to check a planet. Nothing came of it but that mission was 4 years ago. He never gave an official reason for why he suspected that planet, nothing was found but"

"But why do you suspect a planet at random unless you've lost a squad on its surface" Shepard finished Anderson's thinking for him

"Exactly Commander, it's just a hunch but I'll see what I can dig up. It may take me a while though; I can't promise that I can get through years of red tape in a few weeks" Anderson smiled, he was going to be busy for a very long time

Shepard nodded before thanking his old Captain "Thank you sir, just keep this between us though. Feral has access to the Normandy's systems and I don't want him thinking I'm spying on him" Anderson just nodded, he understood perfectly. If the super soldier thought he was being looked into there was a chance he could run.

"Where are you headed next Shepard?" the old soldier asked, curious as to how Shepard's mission was going.

"Noveria, we have reports that Matriarch Benezia has been sighted there. Now that we have Liara T'soni aboard the Normandy we're going to deal with her mother" Shepard said, walking back towards his team mates who stood up as he got close.

"Good luck Commander, god knows you'll need it" were the last words Shepard heard before the doors to Udina's office hissed shut. The small team made their way back to the shuttle bay, stopping briefly along the way to move a Hanar annoying C-Sec along and to be interviewed by some impertinent human reporter, before finally making it into the elevator.

"You really think he could have been Alliance Shepard?" Kaidan suddenly piped up, the elevator was already moving back up to the ship "he could've just been some base brat, picked up the jargon that way" the biotic looked at Shepard

"if that turns out to be the case it might make this all a lot simpler, but If he was Alliance then we should know about it." Shepard just said, the man was a mystery and he trusted his word….but he needed to know.

"Plus if he was Alliance it'd mean he'd be even less likely to completely flip out and kill us all" Garrus purred from the back of the elevator, the vibrations in voice bouncing around the small elevator "Just saying, he hates Cerberus, has nothing against aliens and is supposedly some kind of human-krogan super soldier. Knowing he was once Alliance would make it even more likely that he's one of the good guys"

Shepard chuckled and shook his head at Garrus' statement, but once again the turian was spot on. In all honesty the only thing that truly mattered was that Feral was shooting at the enemy instead of them, but he wanted to help the young man overcome what had happened to him. Knowing about his past would help him do that.

The elevator slowly slid up to the hanger, hissing open the trio stepped out to see Tali and the armour clad Feral sitting on a crate next to the docking port. Walking up to the two he could start to hear idle conversation, apparently Feral was showing her how to improve the performance on her omni-tool

"The hardware is basically the same and sure you can tinker with it, but the software is the big difference between top and bottom of the line. Scrubbing up junk data speeds up your omni-tools performance massively. Truth is that's usually all the top of the line models are, they are more expensive because some technician has to spend hours cleaning it out" Feral shrugged before they both snapped their heads over to Shepard's group "Hey commander, Tali said we should wait for you to get back before hopping aboard"

"Hey! I did not say that! _You_ just complained that you didn't want to be stuck in the Normandy after getting out into fresh air for the first time in years" Tali said, emphasising the word you in a way that made it sound like she was purring it through her lips.

"You know you could've just stayed down there for longer, you didn't have to be back before us" Shepard said, he was surprised they back before him at all

Feral rolled his eyes and winced, breathing through his teeth before finally chuckling "Yeah…well we would've but I think C-Sec might have objected. Hey I didn't hurt anyone….not seriously anyway…..he may have pissed himself though….."

Garrus just sighed, the old C-sec agent was so happy he wasn't still with the force. The paperwork for this…incident would've given him such a headache.

"What did you do Feral? I thought I told you not to get into trouble" Shepard was stern, frustrated that Feral had drawn attention to himself when it should've been a simple shopping trip

"I'm sorry commander" Tali suddenly peeped up "It was technically my fault" all 4 men looked straight at her "I should've known that being alone in the markets would've caused trouble" she was rubbing her hands again, something Feral had noticed she did whenever she was under scrutiny. "Some bosh'tet started calling me a thief and got a crowd all riled up, Feral defended me and shouted at the crowd until they ran away"

That….that wasn't what Shepard was expecting, he thought Feral had just flipped and scared some poor shopper senseless. The idea that he had actively defended the small quarian with the same rage he had shown back in the Cerberus base. It was good, he still felt sorry for the man who received the brunt of his rage and he would eventually have to try and get him calmer but…he was making friends and defending them in public. The man was becoming more and more trustworthy every minute.

"Well then…..good work Feral" after a couple of seconds this earnt a snort from Feral

"Not going to chew me out Shepard? You said no trouble" he smirked and raised an eyebrow at the commander

"Not for defending someone….although next time, try not to scare someone until they piss themselves" Shepard just laughed as he took off down towards the Normandy's airlock. Garrus and Kaidan followed him, nodding approvingly at Feral before jogging up behind him.

Tali and Feral just sat on the crates in silence for a brief "and you were worried he was going to be angry" Feral just smirked over at Tali as he bounced up onto his feet, stretching out his arms and shoulders as he got used to the feeling of combat armour again. He turned around to look at her and sighed "Hey….what you said to Shepard about it being your fault. Just realise this, you did nothing but stand in a market place and some…..bosh head starting something. If you honestly believe it was your fault then he's won, he's made you lesser than you really are. It wasn't your fault and I defended you because you're a good person and my friend. End of story….ok?"

Tali looked up at him and smiled, he was right…if she started believing she was to blame the man would win….and she wouldn't let him but first things first "Bosh'tet, its Bosh'TET~" she simply said back to the man, emphasizing the tet loudly for Feral to hear

"…..what did I say?" Feral looked blankly at her

"Bosh head" Tali replied, giggling as Feral rolled his eyes and rubbed his hand down his face

"Seriously?...ah crap, and that speech was going so well" Feral chuckled, holding out his hand to Tali "Come on, let's get back on board. Shepard will probably be wondering what's taking us so long" pulling the woman back up to her feet he made his way towards the airlock with her walking beside him.

"Bosh'tet…I'm going to have to use that word more often"

- 1 hour later, Communications Room –

Shepard had gathered his entire squad into the room for a briefing before they arrived on Noveria. He wanted to quickly go over the details of what he wanted them to do once they had landed, he stood next to the communications board that he would eventually talk to the council on after the mission was over, leaning on it as he waited for the entire team to file in. Garrus, Kaidan, Tali and Feral were already in the room still in their gear after being on the citadel. They had spent time talking in the cockpit before Joker finally kicked them out, something about not being able to concentrate on shooting them across the galaxy with all the noise.

Garrus was mainly trying to pry out information from Feral, anything he could get his talons on, the stories from Kaidan had peaked the turian agent's interest and he was just throwing question after question at the super human. Feral not budging on much but accidentally letting slip he could take a bullet to the head when Garrus threatened to start interrogating him like he used to in C-Sec. Feral made the slip up of saying not even a bullet to the brain can put me down permanently so nothing you could do would get a word from him.

He was now trying to stop the turian from asking what else he could survive, Tali was just laughing and enjoying that the questions about her immune system had stopped.

"What about a missile to the face?" Garrus asked, sitting forward in his seat and looking to the human next to him, hoping he would answer

Feral just groaned, and he was about to tell the turian the answer when the door to the room opened and the rest of the squad filed into the room. Ashley, Wrex and Liara walked in and sat down in their seats 'Oh thank god! Another question and I was going to have to borrow Tali's shotgun' Feral mentally sighed, readjusting himself in his seat

Garrus sighed in defeat "Fine, another time Feral. Maybe I'll get lucky and we'll enter an elevator together" the turian just chuckled as he sat back in his seat. Feral smiled at that, Garrus asked a lot of questions, but he was a good guy and from what he had heard. A damn good shot. It was going to be fun working with him that was for sure.

Shepard then took the lead and for the next 15 to 20 minutes he detailed why they were going there. Matriarch Benezia, Saren's right hand woman was on the base and they were going to find out why. Shepard was aware of the political situation on Noveria….it was a nightmare, so Garrus and Feral would come with him off the bat with everyone else looking useful inside the complex until Shepard needed them. A full team would be useful, create a presence and he'd have a full skill set to choose from at any moment.

He had chosen Garrus because of his C-Sec carrier and Feral for his lie detecting, politicians were going to lie to him and he needed two people who could help pick them out from whatever truth there was. Plus if anything did kick off he was fairly confident that the combination could handle it pretty efficiently until the rest of his squad arrived.

He told the rest of his team to suit up and get their equipment ready, he may not need them to handle the politicians but Benezia wasn't going to be alone. He needed them all to be on hand in the event of anything she could throw at them. Best case? More Geth. Worst case? Asari Commandos. He really didn't need that but if they did turn up, he'd need biotics of his own. That's where Kaidan, Wrex and Liara came in and that's where another problem arose….Liara

They were chasing and most likely going to kill Liara's mother. She insisted on coming with him when he went to face her and he was going to let her, but he'd have one of the other biotics there as well. She was still fresh to the whole combat idea and trying to pull the trigger at your own mother could make anyone seize up. Time would tell but he planned to be there for her when it was over.

So that was it, everyone knew the job. They knew what had to be done and they knew what was at stake. Benezia knew what Saren was up to, without her information. They would be even more steps behind the rogue spectre.

- Planet Noveria, Port Hanshan –

Shepard stood in the airlock with Feral and Garrus. They were standing there, waiting for the doors to open, in full equipment with their weapons ready for anything that happened…safeties on of course. The only threats for the next few hours would probably be politicians and shooting them would really only halt their progress. Feral groaned, hitting his head on the wall. Garrus and Shepard both stared over at him.

"What? This thing takes longer than the citadel elevators" he stated, slowly hitting his forehead on the wall.

"That reminds me Feral, I'm still waiting for an answer to the missile question I asked earlier" Garrus purred out slowly, tilting his head to one side and as if on cue the airlock doors immediately open and before anyone could say anything else Feral was out of the Normandy and walking out into the port. "….guess I'll just have to wait won't I?" Garrus chuckled as he and Shepard caught up to Feral, who was wearing a long sleeved shirt under his armour. Shepard told him that it was going to be cold and he really wasn't joking.

It was fucking freezing and if it weren't for the long shirt Feral would have been shivering which was….well…it just wasn't threatening for a soldier to be shaking constantly.

The 3 made their way along the walkway towards the main entrance of the Port, when they were stopped by an almost equally armed trio. Feral and Garrus just glanced looks at each other, it looked sketchy and the two just silently agreed to be ready with their weapons.

"That's far enough" the woman in the middle stopped the three, her companions on either side of her; a blonde woman and a turian.

"I'm Commander Shepard and I'm here on important business for the council Ms…." Shepard replied back

"Captain. Captain Maeko Matsuo and this is an unscheduled visit"

"I'm a council spectre, I don't need to schedule a visit" Shepard was sure that was going to be the end of it

"Bullshit ma'am! There are no human spectres!" the blonde haired woman shouted "I say we just send them back off by force" she began to raise her weapon up into her shoulder, something both Feral and Garrus had been waiting for

Feral's pistol came flying up and pointed straight at the blonde woman's head, Garrus quickly following with his assault rifle pointing at the turian "Bad idea lady" Feral said loudly and clearly, shaking his head as she went to raise her rifle the rest of the way. Putting pressure on his trigger, ready to fire off a round if she went any further.

Shepard was about to tell the two to put their weapons down before a voice suddenly rung out, beating him to it.

"Captain Matsuo stand down! We've confirmed their identity. Let the commander through" the loudspeaker rang out.

"….stand down Sergeant, you heard the lady" the Captain finally said, the turian and blonde haired woman slowly lowered her rifle; she was glaring at Feral as she did. Who simply smirked in response as he spun his pistol around his finger before locking it back onto his thigh.

"Told you it was a bad idea" he just laughed as he walked up the stairs and into the reception with Garrus and the Commander. He could've sworn he heard the woman say something along the lines of 'says the man wearing coloured contact lenses' oh….oh he hoped she turned up again.

The following conversation with Gianna Parasini was interesting to say the least. Apparently Benezia had passed through with a contingency of asari commandos. Garrus scoffed at that, they had had trouble getting in but a small platoon consisting of people that could kill you with their brains had gotten through with no trouble. Feral couldn't help but agree, he was good but even he couldn't do that. That wasn't all though, the Asari had come through with several big crates. God knows what equipment she had piled in there. The small conversation was brief but there was something that Feral had caught up on. He was doing as the commander had told him, pay attention. Anyone hear could be lying to them and he had picked something up. Parasini had been totally honest with them except for one statement. She was the assistant to Administrator Anoleis, she wasn't completely lying but there was something….like it was only a half truth. It wasn't much but it might be worth mentioning once they get into the port properly.

The trio finally stepped through the main doors and walked into the large open room. The entire team was silently impressed by not only the size of the place but the magnitude of the storm outside.

"That's going to make things interesting. Peak 15 is only accessible by vehicle and we have an administrator to get through. Christ give me Geth any day" Shepard just rubbed his brow gently before turning to Feral "So Parasini, was anything she said true?"

"Amazingly yh, there was something though. Very small but…when she said she was the administrator's assistant…I don't know. It was like she was only telling a half truth. She didn't lie to us but she's definitely hiding something" Feral just shrugged

"Yh but I doubt there isn't a single person in this place telling anything other than half the truth. Probably nothing to worry about Commander" Garrus shrugged off Feral's suspicions but Shepard just sighed.

"We'll keep an eye on her, but for now. Let's concentrate on getting to Peak 15" Shepard said "You two head over to the office, I'll call the rest of the squad over. Don't go in until I get there, I'll just be behind you"

Garrus and Feral just nodded in agreement and started walking in the direction of the head office.

"So…..about that missile?"

"Christ Garrus….I hope you're this relentless when it comes to killing things" Feral just snorted as they headed towards the main office.

- 5 minutes later, outside Administrator Anoleis' office –

"That….could've gone worse…" Garrus sighed

"Anything? Anything we could use against him?" Shepard looked over towards Feral

"Not a single thing he said was the truth….except that last comment about missing messages" Feral sighed "but no….nothing useful we can use…unless you don't mind becoming a politician. Sorry commander, guess we're looking for another way to get a pass"

The trio were just passing Parasini's desk as Feral finished that last sentence

"I believe I can help you there gentleman" she suddenly piped up, the squad stopping and turning around to look at her. "Anoleis isn't the only man in this place with a pass, try the bar. A turian named Lorik Qui'in has one, you might be able to convince him to part with it" she smiled before turning back to her desk.

Shepard just looked over to Feral who nodded; again…this woman was telling the truth. This time all three were suspicious, why help them? It didn't matter now, if Lorik Qui'in had a pass. Then they needed to get it. The rest of the team was still coming from the Normandy so they had time to run to the bar and get the pass. Shepard noted that Garrus and Feral had made a bet; Feral was convinced Parasini was hiding something and it had to do with her being Anoleis' secretary. Garrus called it, god knows what they were betting with but it better be something other than his spectre budget.

Qui'in turned out to just be another middle man in the search for a pass. The turian worked for synthetic insights and his offices were being scoured by Anoleis' men, if they wanted the pass to Peak 15 they were going to have to go to his office and get what they were looking for. Feral confirmed Qui'in's story, he didn't even bother to figure out the turians motivations but he definitely had a pass and he definitely was willing to give it to them. It was their best option and it was better than doing Anoleis' dirty work to get the pass. The administrator rubbed all three of them the wrong way and quite frankly helping Qui'in avoid his thugs would feel good. Feral grabbed the OSD Qui'in was giving them before the squad trekked off towards Qui'in's office.

'Another elevator….fucking yay' Feral sighed again, they were seriously starting to be the bane of his life. This time however the squad wasn't talking, they were checking their equipment. They were expecting trouble and it paid to be prepared. They all had their assault rifles at the ready and when the doors finally opened, Garrus and Feral followed Shepard's lead as they snuck up on the two guards immediately in front of them. Once the door between the two teams opened the guards spun around the two guards being greeted by three heavily armed soldiers.

Stuttering as she spoke "Freeze! Hanshan Security, this office is sealed" hopelessly trying to talk down the armed men.

"At this point, I don't think you really have that much authority. You're here trying to cover Anoleis' back. Is that really worth dying over?" Shepard just replied, he could hear Feral snorting behind him at the guard's pathetic attempt to gain control.

The woman just looked back at her turian friend and then turned back to the commander "No…no I guess not. We didn't see you if you didn't see us" Shepard just nodded and stepped to one side as the human and turian quickly shuffled out of the office and into the elevator.

"Well that was easy" Feral said unbelievably, he was certain that this was going to have gone down in a rain of gun fire.

"Yh well maybe we're finally getting a break" Shepard replied before a loud crack and a round whizzed past his head "Or maybe not, COVER!" The three quickly dived behind any cover they could find. Shepard and Feral pushed their backs up to the column nearest to the door, and Garrus found cover in the small alcove next to the entrance.

"I got 4 shepard, one's staying up top but I think the other three are coming down the stairs to our front" Garrus called over to the commander who just nodded. He could hear the 3 rifles firing, the rounds landing around the cover they were in. He guessed the last must have been waiting for them to move out of cover. Garrus was putting down as much fire as he could, trying to suppress the slowly advancing group of 3.

"Feral can you see anything on your side?" he watched as Feral slide along the wall, turning to face the stone as he slowly moved his eyes to the side of the rock before a loud crack and a bolt flew past his head. Luckily for Feral the round had struck his kinetic shields, the bullet grazing his cheek instead of turning his head inside out.

"AH! FUCK IT!" Feral shouted, ducking back into cover and resting back against the wall "Sniper Shepard, he's waiting for us to move" Shepard just watched as the cut on Feral's cheek closed up as fast as it had been made. "And with the ones coming down the stairs we need to get up under his position so we can flank them"

"Think you can make it to the other end of the room?" Shepard looked at him, if Feral could get into position then he and Garrus could draw the main group's fire as Feral finished them off. Then they could move up and finish off the sniper.

Feral sighed, he could make it but if that sniper got a cleaner shot at him he probably wouldn't be as lucky. One good shot would punch a hole straight through his shields and the power of that rifle could take his head off…no coming back from that "Give me covering fire and no problem commander." He nodded at Shepard who moved up in line with him. Feral kneeled down and put his rifle onto his back; he was going to have to sprint as fast as he could and holding a weapon would slow his pace down.

"Ok, when I tap your shoulder I'll fire a burst and when I stop you go. I'll put down as much as I can after that but if the sniper gets a round off I won't be able to follow up so get there fast and wait for another signal" Shepard stood behind Feral, rifle at the ready and aimed up towards the balcony.

A few seconds passed, the sound of Garrus and the enemy squad firing was rattling around the room and in a slight lull of the fire. Shepard tapped the man's shoulder as he stepped around the corner, pulling the trigger straight away and sending a wave of bullets in the snipers general area. The second it ended Feral leaped up and sprinted down the hall way as fast as he could. Feral could hear a second burst of fire before a loud crack cut it off, he slid into the wall. The balcony hanging over him as he looked back, where he saw a hand poke around the corner. Thumbs up, Shepard was fine and he was in position.

He grabbed his rifle and hugging the wall he moved along, sliding towards the stairs slowly as he kept his weapon raised. To his right he could see where Garrus was, the turians crate was covered in bullet holes but he could see he was fine. He knelt down, slightly back from the corner at the bottom of the stairs. An almighty hail of fire rained down the hall pinning Garrus down again, Feral just laughed at the turian who rolled his eyes back at the man.

Suddenly he heard footsteps barrelling down the stairs, one of them was making a break for the same column he and shepard had been using. Feral put his rifle down on the ground and waited. The moment he saw the figures rifle appear at the stairs he lunged forward, grabbing the weapon with his inhuman strength and tearing it out of the man's hands before he grabbed the collar of the figures armour. Dragging him around the corner and slamming him into the wall, the impact winding the guard but before it even had time to take an effect. Feral drove his knife straight into the man's chest, his strength and the sharp point of the knife easily piercing the armour and plunging straight into his rib cage. The last thing the guard saw were the deep red, slitted eyes of his assailant before he succumbed to his wound, going limp before Feral let him slide down the wall. Wiping his knife clean before he sheathed it and picked his rifle up again.

Garrus had just watched the whole thing in awe; Feral had been quick and precise. Every single movement had been near perfect and not a second had been wasted. The turian was very impressed but even so they still had 3 left and he still couldn't raise his head without it being blown off and turians were not very good at ducking. He hoped either Shepard or Feral had a plan.

Shepard couldn't see what was happening, but Garrus looked over at him and held his only two fingers. He hoped that meant Feral had killed two of them but the volume of weapon's fire still pinning them down clearly showed that Garrus meant there were two left. They needed a chance to get some precision fire on the guards, they only needed a moment.

Shepard reached around to his back, gripping at one of the small circular disc grenades. He held it up for Garrus to see, the turian acknowledged. The moment Shepard threw it he would wait for the explosion and use the diversion to try and get a kill shot off, hopefully Feral would get the idea as the disc flew past his position.

He turned and stepped out again, bullets bouncing harmlessly off his shielding and armour as he threw the grenade as hard as he could. Aiming just behind the position of the two guards taking cover on the stairs, he didn't want them moving back up the stairs. The disc flew out of his hand and cut its way through the air, he saw Feral briefly before he stepped back into cover; the super human was ready and waiting for Shepard's move.

An almighty explosion rocked the offices, those H.E. mods had been worth it, and the blast had knocked the guards over and taken a serious toll on their shields. Something Feral and Garrus found out as they both burst out of cover, putting well aimed rapid-fire straight into the two recovering guards. Their fire cut through the last of the shielding before well placed shots from both the turian and super human ended the two guard's lives.

The second the two guards were confirmed KIA, Feral spun around his cover and hugged the wall as he jumped up the flight of stairs, two steps at a time. Garrus and Shepard sprinted forward to join him, a large crack coming from their side. The sniper had moved positions too late to do anything about the rest of his squad, but he was now in a relatively defensible position again.

"Good job you two" Shepard said quietly as he took the lead again, his squad mates following close behind him. They had two options; slowly work their way towards the sniper and keep their heads down or rush the bastard. His rifle couldn't fire as fast as the combined fire they could put out. While it sounded more dangerous, the rush option was the better choice. Three armed men charging at a lone sniper meant he was likely to mess up his first shot, and then he'd be totally exposed. He explained the plan to his team mates quickly.

Garrus and Feral would unload as much fire on the snipers position as possible. Shepard would then use an adrenaline rush and charge down on the lone gunman's position. The room was filled with tension, the once loud racket of constant gunfire replaced by total silence. It was the eye of the storm and as fast as it had started, Garrus and Feral's rifles tore through the silence as the two opened fire, bullets bouncing off the rocky walkway the sniper was positioned on.

It had ended within seconds; Shepard had barrelled down on the sniper even faster than Feral had sprinted earlier. His adrenaline spike letting him cover distance like a bat out of hell and the moment he had a clear shot he took it, the round passing straight through the snipers Kuwashii Visor. The sniper was dead and the gun fight was over.

"Nice one commander" Feral suddenly piped up as he and Garrus jogged over. "Like I said…..that was easy" he just smirked as he walked down walkway, stepping over the dead sniper. "Qui'in said his office was in there, it'll only take a minute to get the evidence he wanted" Shepard and Garrus just followed him down into his office, shaking their hands at how easily Feral shook off everything that just happened…including nearly getting his own head removed.

It took about a minute for Feral to work his way through Qui'in's computer, the OSD had taken off all the information on Anoleis the moment it had been plugged in, but the commander wanted him to check the rest of his system for anything else they could use. Sadly there wasn't anything helpful, at least not on Qui'in's system and not without Feral hacking the database of a galaxy wide corporation. Shepard told him not to bother; he didn't need a corporation stepping at his heels. Saren was bad enough. The squad collected their gear and started to make their way out of the office, only to be stopped by a familiar face.

"I don't think you're supposed to be in here Shepard, and if you think you're leaving after killing my men you have another thing coming" the blonde woman coldly stated

"You're men were crooked, they were off duty and breaking the law for bribe money. They shouldn't even have been here" Shepard replied, his fingers tickling the side of his pistol, ready to grab it at a moment's notice.

"Doesn't matter, Anoleis pays my checks and if he wants this done it'll be done. Now, want to know what we did to cop killers on my home planet?" she grimaced as a blue aura surrounded her, the table suddenly flying towards Shepard and his team.

They ducked for any cover they could find, leaping behind the crates in front and behind them. 'FUCK!' Shepard mentally screamed, it had to be a biotic. None of them had any biotic skills and that was bad, if she was even half decent it would prove problematic. A quick burst of fire at the woman confirmed his fears. Her barriers were good; the bullets had bounced off like nothing. Directly in front of him Feral was huddled up behind the table that had been thrown at them, his rifle had been knocked out of his hands and was out of reach but he still had his pistol.

"I HATE BIOTICS!" Feral shouted over the sound of the gunfire raining down on them from the blonde's crooked team of guards. There were three of them but they had the advantage, biotic barriers were protecting them and they didn't need cover. The fire was constant. They needed to do something but there were suppressed. They needed to break the biotic's concentration, halt the fire or both.

Then he remember what he was taking cover behind and how it had reached him in the first place, Shepard saw the smile on his face and realised what he was planning. Looking over at Garrus he signalled for the turian to be ready, the moment the Feral acted they needed to be on top of them.

Feral rolled over onto his back and put his feet up against the bottom of the table, making sure he had placed his feet in the right position he rolled onto his upper back. Bringing his knees up to his chest before he rocked forward, slamming his feet into the furniture as hard as it could. The table flew towards the enemy squad, flying straight into them before they could even react.

That was it, the break they all needed. Feral just sat up on the floor and raised his pistol, pumping round after round into the table as it lay over the once dominant guard squad. Garrus and Shepard quickly joined him, pouring rounds into the steel table. The sheer weight of fire eventually punching through the table top and into the struggling bodies of the people underneath it. Garrus and Shepard advanced slowly, Garrus helping Feral up off the floor with his left hand.

"Thanks Garrus" Feral was panting gently, the table had been heavy but if a biotic could throw it across a room he could push it back along the floor. The teams reunion interrupted by a small groan under the scrap metal that used to be a table. Shepard slowly stepped over, kicking away the blonde woman's weapon. Her barriers had protected her from the majority of their response but she was bleeding. She was dead regardless, bleeding out under the very weapon she had used against them in the first place.

Shepard and Garrus just walked off towards the stairs, but Feral stepped over to her. Looking her dead in the eyes as her own orbs slowly started to glaze over. "There are not contact lenses" He noted the look of surprise on her face before she finally passed, smirking as he stepped off. Following the rest of his team back into the elevator.

They had made their way back to the bar were Lorik Qui'in was waiting, he had better hold up his end of the bargain. They had just waded into a field of fire for his data and they hadn't even begun to chase after the Matriarch. They were about to walk up to the turian administrator when they heard a voice from a table behind them.

"Commander Shepard. Gianna Parasini, I believe it's time I properly introduce myself. I'm with Internal Affairs" the woman called over from her table beckoning for Shepard to join her.

"YES! I knew it" Feral just smiled at Garrus, smirking happily as the turian just groaned.

"Ok ok ok, I won't ask you about the missile anymore Feral" Garrus finally managed to laugh "well played though, I was starting to doubt that nose of yours"

Shepard walked over, leaving the Garrus and Feral to their own devices as they walked off to the bar. Gianna looked a little shocked as she watched the pair stroll away laughing.

"Erm…what was that all about?" she finally asked

Shepard laughed "Feral, the one who looked happy, can smell lies. He told me that you weren't being totally truthful when you said you a secretary. They made a bet together and turns out he was right" he just chuckled as his statement raised more questions than it answered. He quickly moved the officer back onto track. She told him that she was there to take Anoleis down and the evidence Lorik Qui'in had gathered could be vital to her prosecution. Shepard told her that he needed the pass to Peak 15 and Lorik was the only one who had it, Parasini just reminded him that is Anoleis was taken care of, she'd have the ability to grant him anything he wanted. Shepard sighed, she was right and Anoleis needed to be removed. He really hoped he could convince Qui'in to testify, if he suggested it and couldn't convince him, the turian could change his mind on giving him his pass.

- 20 minutes later, outside Anoleis' office –

"Get your hands off me! Spectre! I demand you take this bitch into custody" the corrupt Salarian screamed as he was dragged out towards the space port. Shepard's entire crew was there and they couldn't believe what Garrus had told them, they'd been gone for under an hour and they'd already managed to completely usurp the power in Port Hanshan.

"Shut up" Parasini, slammed the salarians head into the wall before looking towards Shepard "Thanks commander, I'll send word to the garage that you have clearance. If we ever meet again, I owe you a drink" the woman said as she walked off with Anoleis. Shepard nodded in thanks before he started to walk off towards the parking garage. The Mako had been dropped off there and they were going to need it to get to Port 15. He had decided to take Wrex, Liara and Garrus along with them. He needed the biotics and the force of a Krogan against asari commandos would be very helpful. The rest of his team would stay in the Port; they didn't need anything coming after them when they are stranded in the science facility.

The group of 8 made their way towards the garage, the guard at the door letting them into the parking lot. "Ok so everyone knows their job. Let's get this over and down with, I'm sick of the cold already" Shepard stated about to advance further into the garage when all of a sudden a geth stalker landed in front of him, its optics clicking before it leapt away again. "GETH! TAKE COVER!" Shepard managed to yell before an eruption of gunfire filled the room.

The entire squad took cover; Feral grabbed Tali by the waist and tugged her down next to the M-29 Grizzly. The young woman had been slow to react to the Geth assault and Feral had tugged her down just as a rocket flew past where she would've been. "Thanks Feral" it was drowned out by the fire fight, both sides pumping round after round into each other. Liara, Wrex and Kaidan were throwing biotic warps and lifts at the advancing Geth troopers and juggernauts.

"Thank me when this is over and we're both still alive!" he laughed back, the adrenaline rush of heavy fire apparently exciting the red eyed human. The soldiers amongst the group, bouncing up every so often and popping a few rounds into the synthetic beings, taking a couple of the troops down, but the juggernaut was still advancing and it was proving problematic.

That was when Tali realised what she was sitting next to, the grizzly had a cannon and the door was only locked by a relatively simple lock. She got to work, her actions going unnoticed by the rest of the team as the Geth in front of them took precedence. She had gotten through the lock in no time and climbed up into the tank.

"HEY TALI! I need you to help me take out the juggernaut's shields. If we hit it with an overload at the same time it might knock them out for good!" Feral shouted over his shoulder, waiting for a response that never came "Tali?" He spun around to see the hatch of the grizzly open before the entire room shook. The juggernaut being torn open as the high explosive shell connected with its body, blowing it to pieces. "….or you could….do that…instead" He let his rifle drop to his side as the purple tinted face plate peeked out from the hatch, surprised at the entire team just staring in silent shock.

"…..what? it worked didn't it?" Tali eventually piped up, feral laughing as he put a hand on her shoulder.

"Yh it definitely worked" he pointed over to the smoking remains of the juggernaut "in fact I'd call it over kill, you monster" sticking his tongue out slightly as he walked off and sat down on a crate. Tali just giggled, she was glad that Feral was joking but she was even happier when Shepard spoke up.

"Good job everyone and good thinking Tali, now then; Wrex, Garrus and Liara head over to the Mako. I'll be there in a minute" Shepard said as Captain Matsuo stepped into the room with a small squad. He quickly went over to explain what just happened; the revelation that Benezia had brought dozens of crates with her was unpleasant. It meant Geth resistance would be high all away along the pass. Regardless, the mako would be able to handle it. He nodded over to Tali, Feral, Ashley and Kaidan as he stepped past them and over to the mako.

- An hour later, Port Hanshan's garage-

Feral was relaxing on top of the grizzly, he was resting his head back on his arms. He'd barely slept since his release from Cerberus and he was enjoying the break. He looked up as a thump came from in front of him, Tali had hoped up onto the tank with him. "Hey Tali" he slowly sat up and swivelled around, his feet hanging off the edge as Tali took a spot next to him. "What's up?"

"Not much, just a little bored. Kaidan and Ashley are trying to stay in contact with Shepard but the storm is making it hard. I used your software upgrades to help boost the signal, where did you learn how to do that?" Tali squeaked, it was rare that she found more talented than her at software but she didn't mind. She still had him beat in hardware.

Feral chuckled "a lot of tinkering time as a kid, I spent more or less my entire life on computers and….I just figured things out over time. I had a small amount of training later on in school and….other places but it's mainly just playing around until something works" he smiled over at the quarian.

Tali understood perfectly, she had spent most of her life on the flotilla just playing around with machinery, taking it apart and putting it back together. Eventually you just got the hang of it, do it for long enough and you learn things no one can teach. She then looked at his right cheek; there was a small smear of blood on it. "Hey when did that happen?"

Feral raised his fingers to his cheek; looking at them he noticed there was a small red tinge to his skin. "Oh it was back when we were getting that evidence. Sniper round bounced off my shielding and cut my cheek. It was only open briefly but I guess I must have bled a little before it closed up, I hadn't even noticed it until you said something" he just shrugged

"….can you heal any wound?" Tali slowly asked, unsure if Feral really wanted to talk about his regenerative capabilities, jolting back as he held up his left hand. Wiggling his little finger for her to see.

"Not all of them, I can't regrow lost limbs or appendages. So a bullet hole? Sure. Something that can blow large holes in me? Maybe, depends how much I lose. I can heal a lot of wounds that could kill just about anything but I'm not immortal. I can die Tali and I'm fully aware of that" Feral sighed

"It almost sounds like you want to die…." Tali said quietly

"I used to, I used to beg for it. 2 years of experimentation does that to you. I wanted nothing else but death…but now…" he looked at Tali before looking back out across the garage "Right now I have a purpose, I'm being useful and I'm meeting people that make death seem less and less favourable" he smiled weakly at that.

Tali was going to respond to that statement but she was interrupted by Kaidan.

"Hey you two! We have to go" The marine shouted as he and Ashley walked towards the grizzly. "We're taking the tank to Peak 15, Shepard needs our help"

Feral snorted "Shepard needs help? What's next…the Rachni are back?" he was about to laugh but Kaidan just looked at him

"You're fucking kidding me"


	6. The Fate of a Species

The grizzly was rattling along the rocky causeway towards Peak 15, Kaidan was driving and Ashley manned the gun. According to her the Gunnery Chief should get the gun not that Feral really minded, he doubted Shepard had left anything alive for them anyway. He and Tali were in the rear compartment, sitting in the seats closest to the cockpit and the gun. Kaidan had explained what Shepard had relayed to him, the situation with the Geth hadn't surprised them in the slightest but the Rachni had proven…well….no one had expected that.

"Are they sure it's Rachni?" Feral was beyond sceptical, he had heard the stories and when a species gets wiped out by the Krogan you don't really expect them to make a reoccurrence.

"Well first of all Wrex confirmed it, and then scientists in Peak 15 said they found an egg in a derelict ship" Kaidan shouted back over the roaring of the engine. "Apprently they hatched it and it started laying eggs"

"Keelah, who would ever think that was a good idea?" Tali sighed "So what's the commander's plan?"

"No idea, the signal was bad. He just told me what the situation was and that we had to get over there. We should be at Peak 15 in about 15 minutes" Kaidan quickly replied

"Good, wake me when we get there" Feral just sank back in his seat and shut his eyes, pushing his head into the side of his seat.

"Is he seriously going to sleep?" Ashley shouted down at them from her position in the gun.

Tali was going to reply but she was stopped by Feral opening one eye and putting a single finger over his lips. She laughed at that, winking back at him through her visor. The smile on his face as he shut his eye and crossed his arms meant that he had seen it. "You want to try and stop him?" Tali just looked up at Ashley, who shrugged and sat back into her seat.

Tali sat back in her seat, crossing her legs and placing her hands in her lap. She smiled more as she watched Feral sleep, he looked so peaceful. He deserved it after all the things she could imagine he'd gone through…even if it was only for 15 or so minutes.

Feral was enjoying his nap, he hadn't gotten any sleep for about 12 hours and Cerberus hadn't really let him sleep more than 6 hours a night. He may have been a marine but with the experimentation; he never slept fully throughout the night. 15 minutes here or there had been his life saver, plus it never gave enough time for the nightmares to start.

Suddenly Feral was awoken with a jolt, something had slammed into his chest and when he opened his eyes to check what it was, he saw Kaidan pushing a helmet into his chest. "Put it on, you'll need it to get from here to the facility"

"We have to go outside?" Feral just looked up at Kaidan, grabbing the helmet and sliding it over his head and locking it in place.

"Yh but only for a little bit, I just didn't want your face freezing off before we have a chance to throw you at the Rachni" the biotic smirked as he walked over to the hatch, pushing it open and stepping out into the snow storm. Ashley following after she had hopped down from the gunnery nest. Feral was about to stand up from his seat when a small hand came up in front of him, Tali was offering him the same he had given her on several occasions. Smiling behind his helmet, he took her hand and pulled himself up. "Thanks Tali" Feral's voice was coming through the helmets voice piece. "So what do you think?" tapping the side of his helmet "does it bring out the best in my eyes?" he laughed as he started to crawl out of the grizzly, followed by the giggling quarian.

The pair quickly followed Kaidan and Ashley out of the grizzly, walking past the parked Mako and into the complex. The moment they entered the facilities garage Feral reached up and threw his helmet off his head. Sighing happily at the freedom it provided. Noticing the look on Ashley's face "I spent 4 years in a box, I don't like feeling trapped inside something if I don't have to be" he just said as he walked off, taking his rifle off his back as the squad stepped up to the garage's main door.

"Be ready, I doubt Shepard or Wrex left anything alive but we should still be careful" Kaidan said as the door finally moved up in front of them. The garage was a mess, the entire area was littered with the bodies of Geth platforms; their synthetic blood sprayed and smeared all over crates, consoles and the floor.

"Huh….so this is what it must have looked like when you found me in that base" Feral just snorted as he started walking in front, making his way through the garage with the rest of the team following. The trek was pretty uneventful, Kaidan was right; the previous team had destroyed everything. It was easy to follow their path through the wrecked base; the smell of death was more than obvious to Feral as he lead the second squad. The squad only stopped briefly when they found the body of what they assumed had to be a Rachni, they had only ever seen pictures.

"That….is bigger than I expected" Feral just stated, reaching down and rubbing some of the creatures blood onto his fingers, briefly sniffing at them before recoiling and wiping this hand clean in the snow "….well….that will make them easy to smell" Feral slowly stood up, retching slightly as he walked off "Fuck me that stinks" he growled, briefly glaring at Ashley as she bit her lips, desperately trying not to laugh.

They continued deeper into the facility past a VI core and towards the Rift station, noting the burnt panels in a small area. Slightly smouldering pieces of tissue present around the edges of the walkway. The squad quickly jumping onto the tram that would take them to Shepard's position, but before that they had to take another elevator. Much to Feral's dismay, thank god this one was slightly faster, but not even that stopped him being the first out. Something Tali was starting to notice he could manage no matter where he was standing.

The group quickly headed forward, weapons lazily held in their shoulders as they slowly filed down the hall towards the door, Feral went to open the door and was greeted by a room full of guards aiming weapons at him and the rest of the squad. He stared blankly at the group, hoping someone would say something soon; his finger itching at the trigger of his rifle.

"Oh thank god. STAND DOWN! Sorry about that, we can't be too careful. I'm Captain Ventralis, Shepard said you'd be coming" a man stepped forward from the barricade and quickly ushered them past it. His men instantly raising their weapons towards the doors, Feral could smell the stench of Rachni blood all over this room. Clearly they had been holding out against wave after wave of the aliens for quite some time. "The commander is down the hall, you'll find him and his team in there, he should be coming back now from helping the Doctor" Ventralis told them "hopefully with the rest of you here, we can finally put this all to rest" the captain sighed as he stepped back up towards the barricade.

The group moved along the halls until they entered a large room filled with scientists. They weren't sure they were in the right place but the large Krogan suggested otherwise "About time you got here, you must have run into something pretty big" the krogan's voice boomed to the group, before noticing their blank expressions "….guess not, well you're in luck. Should have some more bugs to squish up ahead" the reptile chuckled "I'd hate to have all the fun after all"

A door behind the Krogan opened and the commander, Liara and Garrus stepped out into the hall way. "Good you're here, come on I'll bring you guys up to speed" The entire group converged around the commander who spoke as quietly as he could. Shepard told them what he knew and what he expected. Matriarch Benezia was up ahead and so far only one of her large biotic contingent was dead, so he expected a lot of biotics. Then there was the Rachni, the Queen was with Benezia and he had no idea why. So he was taking the whole squad with him, an entire Asari commando platoon plus whatever Geth Benezia had with her; it was going to be tough but he had faith in his squad as a whole. They would be heading back down towards the maintenance room, apparently there was a back door to the Queen's holding room. Feral, Ashley and Wrex would be at the front, with Liara and Kaidan providing biotic support behind them. Shepard would be in the middle and Garrus and Tali would be bringing up the rear. The two soldiers and the krogan quickly grabbed their gear with Wrex leading the way, Ashley and Feral had no idea where they were going so they let the big reptile take point.

The team was walking through the maintenance hall way before they came out into what looked a cave, Feral and Ashley moved up into line with Wrex; spacing out as they made their way up towards Benezia's position. Feral could hear the footsteps of his squad behind him; it felt good to have a team at his back again. Even if that team wasn't exactly the most orthodox collection of soldiers, mercenaries and 'others' the galaxy had ever seen. He smiled at that, maybe after being strung up and poked with sharp objects for a few years, weird would be good for him.

His train of thought was suddenly interrupted by a familiar smell, Rachni were coming. "Wrex you got that?" he quietly said to the Krogan.

The Krogan looked over at the human, his red eyes glaring into the smaller humans before he laughed "Yh, Rachni are ahead. Good nose" The two raised their weapons, Ashley following their lead as they edged around the krogan. The three suddenly being wrapped in a shimmering blue aura, Feral turning around to see both Kaidan and Liara surrounded in the same aura. 'ooooooo barriers, thank you very much' He smiled, the barrier and his shield meant he could have some fun with this.

As if on cue two large Rachni dropped from the ceiling, putting his rifle onto his back Feral grabbed his pistol and combat knife. One for him and one for everyone else, or so he thought. Wrex had the same idea, grabbing his shotgun. The two charged forward towards the warriors, the unfortunate aliens barely even having time to recover from the fall before Wrex and Feral were on top of them. The few shots they managed to get off mainly missing, the barriers absorbing the rest of the Rachni's panicked attacks.

Wrex's shoulder slamming into one of the creatures and knocking it over onto its side, the Krogans massive foot slamming down on its neck as a large boom turned its head into mush. Wrex lifted his claymore and spun around expecting to have to save his smaller team mates life. Roaring with laughter at what he saw.

Feral was sitting on the dead Rachni, wiping his knife clean on his thigh. His pistol smoking slightly from the few shots he had taken. Feral had taken a slightly different route to Wrex. Instead of knocking it down he had fired on the run, pounding the warrior's front with pistol shots and taking out its front legs. As it collapsed onto the ground he had followed up by damn near slicing the creatures head off, his strength allowing his knife to cleanly cut through the Rachni's spine. Death had been instantaneous.

No one could believe it, Ashley had been itching for a fight and it was over before it even began. The Krogan and super soldier wiping out the warriors as fast as they had arrived. It had only been two of them, but even so….it should not have been that easy.

"You've got a quad human" Wrex just laughed as everyone else walked up to him "Nice to see someone else that might be as tough as me around here, well….almost as tough as me anyway" he growled that last bit, but he was still smiling at the human.

"Err thanks Wrex" Feral said as he sheathed his knife, satisfied the smelly Rachni blood was completely off it. He just watched as Shepard took the lead, patting his shoulder as he went past. Apparently he had impressed more people that just Wrex. He sat on the dead Rachni until Garrus and Tali finally walked up to him.

"What the hell is a quad?" Feral looked at the two, hoping the only aliens he really knew well enough to ask that would have an answer.

Garrus snorted and Tali just looked off to the side "I'll tell you as soon as you tell me if you can take a missile to the head and live Feral, but after that small show. I'm guessing the answer is probably yes"

Scoffing, feral just shook his head before he stood up. Grabbing his rifle again as the trio caught up to the rest of the team. They were getting close.

The doors to the room hissed open; Shepard bursting into the room with Kaidan and Liara immediately behind him, Wrex was staying close behind as they walked in. Feral, Garrus, Tali and Ashley following in and moving to the right, covering the walkway moving around the edge of the big room. They had all been so engrossed in their tactics that it took them a second to notice it. In the middle of the room was a giant box and sitting inside it, the Rachni Queen.

Feral's eyes widened in surprise, she was huge but she wasn't pounding at the glass. For the briefest of moments he felt like he knew what she was feeling. Defeat, she wasn't fighting her captivity…just waiting for it to come to an end. No matter what that end might be. It was the exact same thing he had felt for all those years. His thought train was broken by two things, for a moment he could've sworn the Queen was looking back at him and a voice suddenly rang out.

"MOTHER!" Liara cried at the Matriarch, Feral suddenly noticed the figure from his low position, Garrus and Tali both looked over as well trying to see what was going on.

"Hello Liara, Commander Shepard do you really think that parading my daughter in front of me would change anything?"

The exchange got quieter, Shepard's two squads getting tenser as they wondered how this was going to play out and eventually Feral got his answer when he heard the phrase.

"Have you ever faced an Asari commando unit? Few humans have"

Suddenly a blue aura surrounded Shepard, Liara, Wrex and Kaidan. Freezing them in their spots and the matriarch went to throw another at the second group before Feral shouted "MOVE!" Ashley instantly dived forward and Feral wrapping his arms around Garrus and Tali's waist as he dived forward, taking the two dextro aliens down with him. All three quickly picking themselves up as they dived behind the crates, trying to get a shot off at Benezia until they heard shouting at the other end of the room. "Wanna guess that's the Asari Commando unit?" Feral just sighed as the room exploded with the sound of gun fire and the occasional warping noise of a biotic power being thrown across the room.

Luckily the stasis on Shepard's team had worn off and they were all taking cover behind the crates as well. Both groups were under fire but they knew what had to be done. Feral's squad had to make the move. Benezia was in the way of Shepard's team and her barriers were making it impossible to get a shot in, if Feral's team could get in a forward position the Asari commandos would mean nothing and they could push on the advantage against the Matriarch.

Liara was given an order my Shepard and instantly the young asari and Kaidan, threw up the biggest barrier they could, covering the front of Shepard's squad. Meanwhile a group of Asari were quickly making their way towards Feral's team. Ashley and Garrus were taking pot shots but nothing was really slowing the Asari down, their barriers were too strong and the constant suppressing fire meant they could barely poke their heads out without a round flying past their heads.

That all changed, Shepard and Wrex immediately started to fire across the room straight at the advancing squad. Their assault rifles fire taking the Asari off guard and Wrex's own biotics knocked out the front commando's barriers. Feral took his chance, darting forward with the same speed he had used against the Rachni earlier. Bringing his fist into the surprised commando's cheek as hard as he could, spinning her around and completely disorientating her as she under estimated the strength of the brave human.

Feral wrapped his other arm around her neck and squeezed his arm hard, choking the commando as she struggled against his grip before she went limp in his hold; not dead yet, her life now depended on her team mates. Feral reached down to his thigh and pulled up his pistol, from his new position he had a perfect sight on the commando's and using their team mate as a shield he slowly started to advance. Putting carefully placed rounds into the remaining Asari's barriers, until he saw Ashley and Tali run up behind him. Leaning out from behind the super soldier as he used the Asari as a shield, slowly advancing along the cause way.

Shepard just watched as the three moved up, smiling as he saw Garrus pull out his sniper rifle and started to move slowly behind the main group using his height to his advantage. Sniper round after round was hitting a commando dead on. This coupled with the constant fire of the 'shield' group meant the Asari forces were dropping like flies. Time for his team to make a move, and with a simple nod to Wrex. The Krogan charged through the protective bubble roaring as his face plate collided with an Asari's forehead. The battle was tipping in their favour.

Feral was reaching the end of the walkway and his shields armour was starting to buckle, he could feel bullets entering the unconscious Asari and he finally felt the death twitch as a bullet entered her chest. Realising his shield wouldn't last much longer he replaced he put his pistol back on his thigh and grabbed a grenade, priming it and shoving it down the back of the Asari's collar. Kicking the lifeless commando down the stairs in front of him and into the groove where the remaining squad was taking cover. Diving back, all three of them took cover as an explosion erupted from the bottom of the stairs. Feral was on his front and Ashley and Tali pushed past him, running down the stairs and finishing off the Asari. Tali's shotgun making light work of whatever barrier's they could muster before Ashley's assault rifle peppered them.

Feral started to sit up when a clawed hand was thrust into his face "I have to say, I've never seen an Asari used as a shield before. I'll have to make a recommendation to C-Sec on its effective ness in a fire fight" Garrus just stood there, the turian equivalent of a smile on his face. Feral grabbed his hand and was yanked to his feet "Now come on, I can't wait to see how you'll deal with Benezia" his mandibles clicking with exciting as the pair caught up with Ash and Tali.

The two squads suddenly converged on each other, taking aim at Matriarch Benezia. Feral's unit had successfully fought their way around and Shepard's unit had beaten a hole in the elder Asari's group. Few humans had ever faced an Asari commando unit, but Shepard's squad was not just human and they had made the centuries of training seem worthless. Benezia was now staring down the barrels of the 8 man team. There was only one way this could end.

"Mother…please stop" Liara was begging, her hand shaking as she reluctantly pointed her pistol at her own mother.

"Never!" Benezia raised her arm, her barrier moving up to her fist and surrounding it in a pulsing blue light but she never had the chance to use the attack. The moment she raised her arm, 7 weapons unloaded everything they had straight into the Asari. Her barriers were weakened and several shots got through, wounding the woman as she fell to the ground.

Liara didn't even wait for the weapons of her comrades to point to the ground; she threw her pistol down and ran forward, taking her mother into her arms.

"Mother…." Liara sobbed, Shepard slowly stepping up to the two Asari and placing his hand on Liara's shoulder "Why?...why do any of this?" Liara was pleading for answers.

"It's Saren….his ship, they get into your mind" Benezia was coughing out her words "They….warp and twist your own way of thinking….I thought I was strong enough…I thought I could overcome it but I couldn't. Saren…sent me here to obtain the location of the Mu Relay from the Rachni. You…you h-have to stop him" She looked straight at the commander "Please…..stop Saren"

Benezia's hand came up and cupped her daughter's wet cheek "I've always loved you Liara….always" her hand dropping back down to her side as her body went limp. The room was silent, no one was saying anything. Everyone heard Liara gulp before finally saying "I love you too mother" laying Benezia back down onto the ground before standing up and leaning into Shepard. The commander just held her….nothing could be said. Not now.

"Take 5 everyone, we'll figure out what to do next then" Shepard said solemnly. The squad dispersing and walking off into the sides of the room, Shepard leading Liara away from her mother's body. Tali was about to walk away but she stopped when she saw Feral walking up to the pod that contained the Rachni queen. He was just staring at her, she was going to walk away when she something move.

"FERAL BEHIND YOU!" The mechanic screamed, Feral's head bolting around to see what she meant. A dead commando was getting up off the ground, her movement awkward and stiff. He quickly reached for his pistol and aimed it at her, his mind screaming at him to shoot. He didn't…but Tali did, her shotgun tearing right through the Asari. To both of their amazement, nothing happened. The Asari just slowly stood back up, this time with a gaping hole in her stomach. By this point the entire squad had returned, raising their weapon at the Asari before jumping slightly as the Rachni Queen pounded on the glass directly behind Feral.

Feral jumped off the side, putting distance between him, the queen and the asari as he stood just behind the computer console; his weapon flicking between the two.

"This one…serves..as our voice" The Asari slowly spoke, her words as jerky as her brief movements. "We cannot sing, not in these low spaces. You're music's are….colourless"

Shepard was the first to speak "Music? I don't understand, what are you doing to her?"

The Rachni Queen began to explain everything. How the Rachni communicated through colouring the air, through the touch of thought. How her children had been torn away from her voice and went insane, no one expected her to beg for them to be killed. She told them her children were beyond saving, they could only suffer.

Everyone could tell the queen was distraught by the words she was using, by her pleading. Feral, however, could hear it. Underneath the normal voice was a higher frequency of sound, he could only just pick it up but it sounded like crying. He lowered his weapon and just stared at the giant Rachni, letting the scene play out behind him.

When the queen told Shepard why her children were destroying Peak 15, Feral just inwardly growled. The scientists had taken them, to turn them into weapons. It wasn't until the queen addressed him that he looked up.

"This one" the asari shuffled awkwardly to turn her head towards Feral "he knows our pain more than anyone, we can see it in his eyes" Feral just stared down at the ground.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Ash shouted from the back of the room, no one but Shepard knew what Feral had gone through.

Feral just shrugged "Maybe I can relate to being kidnapped, experimented on and turned into a living weapon" he briefly looked over at the rest of the group. "Just saying" The room was silent after that until finally the queen spoke again.

"Will you ease their suffering for us? Will you help them?" Feral looked back down at the ground, that constant sound of sobbing was getting louder as he got more and more used to it. Looking back up at the queen he managed to get a few words out "Yh….I'll take care of them" he sighed, he had no love for the Rachni, but being begged by a crying mother to kill her children…it was heart breaking.

Both the queen and her asari voice box turned back towards the commander "Before you deal with my children. What will you sing? Will you free us or will you let us fade away once more?" The fate of the Rachni rested on the commander's choice.

"What would you do…if…I freed you?" Shepard asked, raising his hand to silence the rest of his squad. Garrus and Wrex especially were about to voice loudly what a mistake that was, but Shepard wanted to hear it.

"We would seek a new place…to teach our children harmony….war destroyed us….I will not let my children suffer anymore. If they understand, maybe we will return" the asari voiced for the queen.

"Feral?" the commander called over

The response was another shrug; Feral hadn't taken his eyes off the Rachni queen once. "Sorry commander. The asari is dead…no bodily functions to read and even if this box was thin enough. I'd have no idea what to look for" his voice was quiet and monotone "You'll just have to trust her"

"Trust her and the only thing that will happen is another Rachni war! And this time my people won't be around to save you all!" Wrex boomed, the Krogan couldn't believe releasing the Rachni was even on the cards. His people had died saving the council races from them and their reward had been the genophage. His outburst was the pilot light, the entire squad started arguing. Shepard and Feral just listening to the comments. Genocide was wrong. The Rachni were a menace. The argument was suddenly silenced by the sound of cracking glass.

Feral had punched the queen's containment unit. His fist not penetrating all the way through the box but digging a decent way into it. Quickly pulling his hand out, blood dripping down his fingertips as the glass tore at his skin slightly. His face was pulled into a snarl as he glared at the group.

"GENOCIDE? They WERE a menace?" he was growling at the group before he looked over to Shepard "There is only one thing you need to consider Shepard. One!" he was furious but he took a few deep breaths, calming himself down as best as he could. "When you found me, you had to wade through the people I'd killed. I told you that I had been locked up and experimented on. That you ultimately had the final say on what happened to me. You let me go Shepard." His words became softer as he expression dropped "She's been locked up, had her children taken away from her. They did this Shepard not her. Her only crime is existing."

"So commander…you freed a man who slaughtered an entire science division. Ask yourself this…..what makes me better than her?" his piece was over, he started to walk away "Now If you'll excuse me….I have to go and kill her children" he said quietly as he shoved his way through the rest of the group. Shepard turned to watch him walk off.

"Kaidan, Wrex and Tali. Go with him" he just said, deep in thought. Turning back as the three quickly took off after the angry super soldier. Feral was right though. The queen hadn't done anything but give birth. The scientists had stolen her children and made them go insane. The fault wasn't hers. He had released Feral who had massacred an entire facility filled with people. The Rachni's past was irrelevant. Humans had been guilty of unspeakable acts as well; Feral was just the newest addition in a long history. He sighed loudly as he stepped forward to the console. He really hoped he wasn't going to regret this. He was going to trust her and give the Rachni a second chance.

- In the elevator to the hot labs –

Tali was worried about Feral, she had seen him angry before but this time it was different. After he had defended her in the citadel he was instantly back to his loud, goofy self. This time, he was silent and his face was stiff. He didn't even smile when Kaidan said that he'd never seen anyone shout at the commander like that before. Now he was just standing in the elevator, no sighing, and no complaining. He was just staring at the door as he waited for it to reach their destination. The Hot Labs, apparently there was a way to rid the base of the Rachni permanently from a terminal within.

The moment the elevator stopped, Kaidan stepped out first. Followed by Feral, Tali and Wrex bringing up the rear. Tali sighed to herself; she'd hoped that Feral was going to spring past everyone and make it out first like he always did but again. Nothing, for now Feral was gone. She hoped it wouldn't be forever.

They walked up as the labs started to open up, stopping at the sight of a lone scientist sitting in the middle of the room. Kaidan just looked back at the rest of his squad, who shrugged in response. He clearly wasn't a threat but it was very odd.

"Hello?" Kaidan slowly said, trying to get the man's attention. He was rewarded by the man looking up at him and answering in an eastern European accent.

"Are you here to secure the situation?" he scientist asked, hope in his eyes at the squad.

"If by that you mean kill the Rachni? Yes, we are" Feral replied quickly.

"Good, you will need the neutron purge to wipe them all out. The station is just over there and I can help you do tha-GAH!" the man's chest suddenly exploded, spraying Kaidan in a small shower of blood. His body slowly lifting up into the air and revealing the Rachni warrior behind him. Luckily there was only one of them and Tali and Wrex's shotguns made light work of the lone attacker. The scientist being flung across the room as the warrior fell.

"Keelah….now what do we do?" Tali said, holding her shotgun at her side as she looked towards Kaidan.

"We fire off that purge" Feral said from behind them, he was patting down the dead scientist and reached into a pocket. Pulling out a data pad. "The code for the purge is on this and the terminal is up ahead. Tali and I can figure it out, but if we're lucky it'll have a VI interface. We say the code and…..kaboom" the man stood up and walked off to the back of the room. Closely followed by Wrex, the idea of destroying the Rachni with an explosion excited the Krogan and he wanted to be there when it was activated. Kaidan and Tali just glanced at each other before jogging after the others.

Feral had been right, there was a VI interface and it made their lives a whole lot simpler. All they had to do was input the code and then run. Kaidan sounded happy at that "Easiest thing we've had to do all day" he laughed as Feral stepped up to Mira.

"Activate the neutron purge Mira" Feral stated "Activation code; 875-020-079 code Omega, local execution" he finished his sentence as the team turned around back towards the door.

"Code accepted, local execution in 120 seconds" Mira said before the door outside was filled with the screech of Rachni.

"I had to say something didn't I?" Kaidan mentally kicked himself "Ok, 2 minutes and counting and a room full of Rachni. Ideas?"

Kaidan just looked back at the rest of his team, hoping anyone had a plan because they didn't have time to fight their way out conventionally.

"We charge our way through" Feral finally piped up "We open that door and us three open fire, just general spraying. Then Wrex punches a hole straight down the middle and we follow him through."

Wrex just laughed "Sounds good to me" he walked back, Krogan were fast but they took some distance to get up to full speed so he stepped back and got ready. Shoulder down, face forward. Straight into the Rachni. Kaidan, Feral and Tali quickly pushed themselves up around the door, giving the Krogan room to fly past them as they sprayed lead into the room.

"Ready Wrex?" Kaidan shouted back, his hand hovering at the door panel.

"Born ready" came the response, the biotic slapping the control as all hell broke loose.

The three at the door immediately began spraying rounds into the crowded room, Tali was kneeling in front of Feral. Her shotgun taking out a few of the closest whilst Feral and Kaidan just peppered the rest, knocking them back as Wrex suddenly juggernauted past them. Shunting the Rachni out of his way as he ran into them as fast as he could.

The moment he had passed, Kaidan had followed and sprinted down the hole Wrex had made. Quickly followed by Tali and Feral. All four of them made it to the elevator, panting as they slammed the doors shut behind them and getting the elevator moving. A couple of moments passed before a loud explosion rocked the facility. Kaidan sighed, he couldn't believe that had worked but he was glad it had. Feral's idea had been crazy, but using Wrex as a battering ram had been ingenious.

"So what now?" Tali finally managed to say, she was out breath. Sprinting through a swarm of Rachni was definitely a first and it had taken a lot out of her.

"We find Shepard and head back to the Normandy. We're done here" Kaidan replied.

"And we find out if we just committed genocide" Feral added. If the commander had killed the queen, they had just wiped out the last of the Rachni.

- Back aboard the SSV Normandy, 2 hours later –

Feral was in the shower, he had managed to get in after Kaidan. Shepard was busy uploading the mission reports and after they had been debriefed he had to talk to the council. Feral smiled at that as water rushed down his body, running his fingers through his hair. He had let her live, he laughed at that. He really didn't think Shepard would have done that, but as he was leaving the communications room. Shepard had told Feral that he was right, that if Feral deserved a chance then so did she.

Feral just stood there for a while, letting the hot water flow over his skin. How long had it been since he had simply stood in a shower? Sure Cerberus had cleaned him but it was usually after being thrown into a room and then doused by a pair with a water cannon. This was heaven in comparison, enjoying every minute of his allotted time before stepping out and staring at himself in the mirror. His skin shining slightly as water ran down over his muscles. He was thankful the process hadn't made him grotesquely huge. He was about the same size as Shepard and Kaidan, but his muscles were much denser which gave him his inhuman strength.

Feral quickly dried his body before putting his alliance uniform back on, stepping out of the shower room as another marine made his way in. Stepping into the elevator and riding it down as he dried his hair off, combing it into some sort of shape with his fingers. He entered engineering and stepped up to his terminal, throwing the towel over the twisted guard rail as he started scrubbing the system up again. He hadn't even noticed her until she spoke over to him

"Hey Feral" Tali said over from her own computer "Are you feeling better now?" she slowly walked over and sat down on the guard rail next to the man's towel.

Feral looked at her before smiling and shaking his head, Tali smiled inside her helmet. Feral was back to his old self again. "Were you worried about little ol' me?" he glanced over as he tapped away at the terminal's keypad

"A little, you didn't even complain about the elevator after you're outburst" she giggled, tilting her head slightly at the super human.

Feral stopped briefly at that, reminded about how he shouted at everyone over the Rachni queen. Reminded about why he associated himself with her situation so much. His own imprisonment, his torture and the experiments. All those memories came flooding back until a voice pulled him out of it.

"Feral?...I'm sorry I didn't mean to…I was only joking" Tali said, she was worried that she'd just gone and ruined his good mood again. Feral's eyes eventually looked back up into hers.

He shook his head at that "Sorry Tali I was just….remembering some stuff that's all. You didn't do anything wrong I promise" he smiled up at her. He didn't want her to feel bad over something she had no part in.

"Ok Feral….if you ever want to talk about anything. I'm just over there ok?" she smiled back at him, she was rubbing her hands again.

Feral smiled back at her, genuinely smiled. She wasn't asking because she wanted to know. She was asking because she wanted to help him. Shepard had asked because he needed to know, but Tali, Feral could tell she had no desire to know what Cerberus had done to him but she was still willing to listen. "Thank you Tali, really thank you" he put a hand on her shoulder and just squeezed gently "If I ever need to get something off my chest, you'll be the first person I come to"

Tali's smile only got bigger at this, bouncing slightly as she nodded "No problem Feral, happy to help" she wasn't going to press the issue any further. If Feral needed to talk, he would come to her. She quickly moved back to her terminal, unaware that Feral was just smiling at the small woman for a little while before he turned back to his computer. His smile never really leaving his face this time.


	7. Death and the Completion of a Pilgrimage

The Normandy was quiet, for the first time since Feral had arrived there. The only noise present in the ship was the low humming of its engines. Shepard had called for the crew to turn in; a small skeleton crew remained in the CIC on the off chance anything happened. Joker was asleep in his seat, most 'nights' he couldn't be bothered to move. His chair was comfy enough and a broken leg didn't really help him fall asleep.

Kaidan, Ashley, and Garrus were in their own sleeper pods. Liara usually slept at her desk in her office. Chakwas had let Wrex sleep in the med bay, seeing as the surgical beds were the only things in the Normandy comfy enough for him to sleep on. After Tali had told Shepard about feeling homesick due to the quiet, he had arranged for her to have a small portable cot in the engine room, the noise of the engine had helped the Quarian sleep.

Feral had refused a sleeper pod, only telling Shepard the real reason for his hesitation. Where else would Cerberus let him sleep? It kept him contained. Shepard offered him the same sleeping arrangement as Tali and the human quickly agreed.

So there he was, sleeping with his face down into the pillow he had stolen from Shepard's room while the commander was talking to Liara. He was going to tell the commander but he figured it could wait. Shepard's bed had more than enough anyway and he needed all the help he could get to block out his night vision, even when he closed his eyes he could see light as if it was the middle of the day.

He could hear Tali shifting in her sleep; the quarian had shut off her auditory unit. According to her she had a tendency to sleep talk. Feral smiled into the soft pillow as he concentrated on his hearing, and hidden within the humming of the engine he could hear her mumbling non-distinctly but he couldn't make anything out. Opening an eye briefly to break his concentration, letting the noise of the room fade back to its normal level.

He reached one hand under his pillow, placing his fingertips gently on top of his combat knife. He knew it was stupid, put he had slept in fear for years. On occasion he would fall asleep and wake up strapped to a table, a man holding a knife over him before they started their tests. Now he had the knife….and it made him feel safe. He closed his eyes again, pushing his head into the pillow and letting him succumb to his fatigue. 4 years of captivity, his break out and the mission on Noveria had taken its toll on him. Finally he could rest.

Hours passed, the only noise on the entire ship was the sound of the skeleton crew in the CIC. Most of the ships lights were dimmed to simulate night for the sleeping crew. Tali was sleeping peacefully. She still wasn't used to the quiet, but the humming of the engine gave the peace of mind that allowed her to sleep.

Quarian sleeping patterns were very similar to humans, and in one of those moments where you turn in your sleep; barely aware to the world around you as you stir. She heard something that made her jolt up in her cot. She thought it had been the engine but the Tantalus drive core was still going strong, the noise had stopped and she was about to lay back down before she head it again.

It was Feral; he was panting and whimpering into his pillow. His body tensed up in the foetal position and she could see one of his hands, his knuckles were turning white from the grip he had on his pillow. He was having a nightmare, and from the way the man was shaking she knew it was like nothing she could ever experience. She slowly pushed herself off the cot and walked across the room, their cots were on opposite sides of the room, pushed against the sides so they took up as little space as possible. She was making her way across the engine room, nothing but the blue light illuminating her path.

The humming of equipment was constant inside the room, its sterile white tiles reflecting the light of the large surgical spotlights. Feral was screaming, crying out in agony as he tugged at his bonds. Every ounce of his strength trying to break the restraints around his wrists and ankles. It was pointless, after 18 months Cerberus had gotten wise to his escape attempts and by this point, nothing he did tried would surprise them. After his last attempt at breaking loose they took no chances. Feral had forced his hands out from his shackles and ripped almost all of the skin of his hands, it had quickly grown back but the pain had stopped him from getting through the doors before he was captured again.

"Now now subject-0515, the more you struggle. The longer this will take" the scientist chuckled as his scalpel went back down. "Experiment number 25; we will be removing part of the subject's liver. This is a further test from out previous experiments into organ regrowth."

The scientist's words were drowned out by the sound of Feral screaming in agony, every muscle in his body was tensing up and begging for it to end. He had no idea how long it actually lasted for, he never did. He seemed to last forever and when it finally ended he just collapsed back onto the table. Panting raggedly, his voice hoarse from crying out as he laid back. The brief interlude was the only thing that kept him going, the pain slowly subsiding as he felt the large incision in his side closing up. The fibres of his muscles and skin weaving back together.

"Fascinating, subject shows total organ repair in a matter of minutes" the scientist said

"Good" Feral recognised this voice, it was always there but he never knew where it came from; nor who it belonged to "That's all for today doctor, let Mr Lloyd get some rest. We don't know how far this regeneration factor will let us go yet and we can't have the only survivor of the procedure die now"

"Yes sir, sedate him and take him back to his holding cell" the scientist said as he walked off. Feral groaned as he felt the needle enter his neck before everything faded into darkness.

Feral was laying on the floor of his holding cell, face down into the hard steel. He was barely conscious, the experiments…the pain. It took everything out of him and he knew it would only start again tomorrow. Suddenly he felt a hand at his shoulder, shaking his body.

"Wake up" the voice said, Feral laid there for a second before he realised he had a chance. He could take this figure, fight through the agony his body was in. He had a chance to escape and he'd take it.

"Come on wake up" the hand pushed at his shoulder again and this time Feral took his chance. He pounced up, grabbing the knife from the soldier's side and tackling him to the ground. One hand gripping tightly at his neck. Snarling loudly as he started to bring the knife down into the Cerberus dog's chest.

But he didn't, something had stopped him. The soldier's eyes were darting around in his skull, never fully looking away from him but that wasn't what bothered him. The eyes were luminescent, bright white orbs.

"F-feral….I can't breathe" the man's voice choked out, but it was synthesised. Feral was still snarling at him, it was a trick. Something to get him to let down his guard. That was when he noticed a bright blue light in front of him. The holding cell dissolved around him, he was in the Normandy's engine room. He eyes where darting around the room before he looked back down, just as the room had changed. The soldier shifted in his mind…..to the one person he never wanted to hurt. Tali.

Feral's snarl turned to shock, he jumped away from the woman; who began to cough when he let go of her slender neck. He crawled back away from her, looking at his left hand. He was holding his combat knife, the knife he'd grabbed from the soldier in his dream. It had been the knife under his pillow. He dropped it in horror, he could've killed her.

Tali was coughing, trying to get air back into her lungs after Feral had leapt off her. She was slowly pushing herself up onto her knees before she looked up at the man. The look of fury that had been in his eyes seconds ago was replaced by sheer panic; his eyes were darting all over the room as he sat slumped against the wall. He was shaking, visibly shaking. The knife that had been ready to plunge into her was lying on the floor next to him.

Tali slowly picked herself up, looking over at Feral. She should've been angry, she should've shouted at him. But Feral clearly didn't know what he had been doing; the realisation of what he'd done had pushed one of the bravest people she knew into a state of terror. She rushed over to him, putting a hand onto his neck and trying to get him to look at her.

"Feral its ok. You don't have to worry I'm fine "She said loudly, trying to get the man to look back at her. Feral looked up at her, his eyes still darting around hers. He refused to look into her eyes until "Look at me!" the force of her tone made him bolt straight, he'd never heard her shout like that. His eyes looked straight into hers.

"T-Tali" his voice was shaking "I'm so sorry I didn't mean t-to" he was suddenly silenced by Tali shushing him and pressing a finger to his lips.

"It's ok, you were having a nightmare. You didn't know it was me and the moment you did, you stopped." Tali stated, she needed him to realise the facts. The sooner he did, the sooner his panic would subside. "I'm fine really, see?" She gestured to herself, stepping back a little so Feral could see her. She smiled slightly when she saw him quickly look up and down her, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. When he opened his eyes again they had stopped vibrating wildly in all directions, he was breathing normally again and his hand's had stopped shaking.

"Come on, if you want to tell me what happened you can tell me over there" Tali said gently, taking Feral's hand and pulling him up onto his feet. Feral sighed and nodded, he couldn't get out of it this time. Tali deserved an explanation and 'Bad stuff happened to me and made me crazy' wasn't going to cut it.

The two stepped over to Feral's cot, sitting down on the soft fabric. Feral sat with his hands between his legs. He was looking down at the ground collecting his thoughts.

"You don't have to tell me what happened you know" Feral looked up at her at that; he could see the look of worry through her visor.

"No, it's ok. I promised to come to you if I needed to talk and…after….what I did" Feral stopped looking down again. Tali just took his hand and squeezed it gently. Feral looked back up at her, she was letting him know that she really was ok. "After that, it's probably best I talk about it…so…here it is."

Feral told her everything, he left out everything before he'd captured. But he told her everything. The experiments he'd undergone, the genetic reconditioning, the metal weaved onto his skeleton and inside some of his bones, and the experiments. The torture he'd endured while the scientists confirmed the degree of his regenerative abilities and the things he had to do just to stay alive. The scientists had made him fight against all manner of creatures using all manner of weapons.

Tali sat in silent horror as he told her everything; she was looking down at the ground. Just attempting to process everything was giving her a headache.

When she'd arrived at the citadel she'd been shot, Dr Michel had done a small procedure to take out the bullet and then close her up. She knew what it felt like to be shot and cut into but…..the magnitude of Feral's experiences made that pain seem infinitely smaller. She couldn't even imagine that kind of pain, let alone coming out of it alive. To most people death would have been their saving grace; an end to the pain but Feral didn't even have that. Just days and days of being cut open, shot, stabbed, beaten and broken to the brink of death. Only for it all to happen again the very next day.

Feral started talking again, this time it was about Noveria. His outburst in the Rachni Queen's chamber, what he had heard underneath the puppet's voice. Tali understood instantly why Feral had been so quiet, why he'd been so angry at everyone discussing why or why not the Queen deserved to live. They had all missed it; the queen was a mother begging for her children to be killed. Begging for a second chance at life. Feral knew the feeling more than anyone, praying for death but when the opportunity to live showed up, he had taken it without a second thought.

Then Feral told her about his dream, what he had seen and felt. All the pain rushing back as he slept and then when he saw an opportunity to escape, even if it was just from his own dream. He'd attacked it ferociously.

"There it is…that's everything I can think of right now." His story was finally over and it felt good, even his super human strength couldn't lift off the weight of his past. Getting it off his chest felt good, he just felt bad for Tali. Looking over at her, he could see that she was having trouble with everything. He put a hand onto her forearm. "Are you ok?" he asked, worried that he'd told her too much.

She bolted back, looking straight at him. He could see her eyes were contorted into a confused look. "Am I ok?...Keelah how can you even ask that? After everything that happened to you…." She looked back down at the floor "I should be the one asking you that…."

Feral smiled at that, it was true but even so he was worried about the small woman. He'd had time to come to term with all of the things that happened to him, years with just your thoughts as company would do that. He clearly had unresolved issues but talking about it was helping, first Shepard and now Tali. "I'm fine Tali really…thank you for listening. It helped a lot" he smiled across at her "but seriously, are you ok? I told you a lot of…really…messed up stuff and that's after I attacked you"

Tali just sighed; she couldn't help but smile at Feral's comment. His eyes were filled with kindness yet again, even with their fiery red colour. "Yes, I'll be ok. It's a little sore but I'll be ok" she rubbed her neck gently "but maybe you shouldn't sleep with a knife under your pillow for a while"

"Says the girl with a knife in her boot" Feral smiled back at her, the pair sharing a small laugh together as they sat on the fold out bed. "You're right though, no more weapons under the pillow." Feral looked over at the knife, lying on the ground. Inwardly sighing, he could've killed Tali….he swore not to let Cerberus create a monster but the truth was they had.

Tali saw where he was looking and the look in his eyes. "You're not a monster Feral" Feral just looked over at her, surprised as she had apparently read his mind. "You're capable of a lot but if you a monster you wouldn't have been so scared by what you had done. You wouldn't have asked me if I was ok after everything you've been through. A monster wouldn't care and a monster definitely wouldn't have defended someone he barely knew so publicly" Tali finally finished, letting Feral think about what she had said. "Get some sleep Feral, I'll just be over there if you need anything" Tali stood up and started to walk off back towards her cot.

"Tali wait" Feral said behind her, Tali turned around only to find herself being pulled into the man's arms. She just stood there for a while as Feral hugged her, wrapping her arms back around him gently before he finally leant back and squeezed her shoulders.

"Thank you Tali" he smiled gently at her before turning around and getting back into his cot.

The small quarian just stood in the blue light of the engine, blushing inside her helmet. It was just a hug between friends but its importance was overwhelming. Before too long she just walked back to her cot, and got into back into bed. The warmth of Feral's arms lingering on her mind as she fell back to sleep. On the other side of the room Feral was fast asleep, after getting his nightmares of his chest. He slept peacefully for the first time in years.

- 8 hours later, Armstrong Nebula –

Admiral Hackett had given Commander Shepard news of Geth outposts throughout the Skyllian Verge. For the last 4 hours the Normandy had been bouncing from cluster to cluster, taking out the outposts systematically. Currently the squad was engaged in combat with the Geth. The last outpost was on Rayingri, where the Geth had taken over a research outpost. Deep underground Shepard and his team were being attacked by husks and several Geth platforms, including snipers and a few destroyers.

The team was making short work of the Geth platforms, and the husks had quickly been wiped out by Tali's shotgun and Feral's fists. Once they got close enough he had grabbed them and thrown them into the walls of the cavern, twisting their heads almost cleanly off or just punching at them until it stopped moving. The fire fight was over and they were slowly moving through the cavern, a final sweep to make sure everything was finished off. Feral's fists had synthetic blood on them and his armour had a light spattering of the white liquid. As he slid over a crate he felt a geth platform grab at his leg, he looked down and saw the machine. It had no legs and was barely functioning, clearly the victim of one of the many grenades the team had thrown into the large crowd. He swiftly brought his other boot down onto its head, crushing its central processor and putting an end to yet another geth platform. Scraping his boot against the side of a rock before catching up with the rest of the squad.

The facility had another door and one last level, Shepard signalled for Feral to move to the door. Feral nodded and quickly jogged up, pressing his head into the metal and closing his eyes. Listening for any sort of activity on the other side of the door. After a few seconds he stepped back and walked up to the commander.

"Sounds like husks on the either side, lots of them" Feral said as he stood next to the commander. Shepard nodded and signalled over to Garrus, Ash and Tali to line up next to him. They all stood in front of the door, pointing their weapons up. "Ok Feral, we're ready for them. I want you to open the door and get back out of the way" Feral just nodded in response, quickly making his way back up to the door.

He stood up and readied his hand over the switch, looking back briefly just to make sure they were all ready.

"Don't worry Feral, if any of them kill you we'll make sure they don't kill you too badly." Garrus said when the human looked back. Earning a fake, silent laugh from the soldier. Feral noticed that both Tali and Shepard glared slightly at Garrus before turning back to the door.

Feral hovered his right hand over the door, holding up his right hand and putting 3 fingers into the air. Slowly he took one finger down, counting the team down. 3….2…..1….

Feral slammed his hand into the door switch and before he'd had time to move out of the way, the horde of husks had grabbed him and thrown him down the shaft. The surprise and magnitude of the force had surprised them all, Feral hadn't had time to react and found himself rolling head over heels down the tunnel.

Feral could hear the eruption of gun fire from his squad as he landed in the pool of water at the bottom of the shaft. He'd barely had time to react as a husk leapt forward but luckily he had his knife back in place on his chest, pulling it out and slamming it into the side of the husks head. Sending it flying off to the side before a second one jumped from behind, this time he couldn't react, and fell straight back into the water.

The husks clawed at his armour, getting lucky once and swiping three of his knife like nails along his face. Feral snarled in pain, grabbing the husk by the neck and throwing him off into the wall. Quickly leaping to his feet, he saw another husk coming his way using the forward momentum of getting back up he brought his right fist straight into the husks head. The synthetic monstrosity's head exploding at the force of the impact before Feral unclipped his pistol, finishing off the husk he had thrown to the side. When the husk finally went down, the cave was filled with silence again.

Feral stood at the bottom of the shaft, looking around to make sure that was it. His night vision piercing through the low light, all that was left were the Dragon's Teeth. He shouted "Clear" up the tunnel before he slowly made his way back up. Rubbing his face as the cuts finished closing up, he could taste a small amount of blood on his lips. The cuts had been pretty deep but nothing he couldn't take. He was more pissed off about the water, he was soaking wet but luckily it had cleaned all off the synthetic blood from earlier. The smell had really started to annoy him.

He finally stepped out over the top of the tunnel and saw the aftermath of what had happened. The bodies of the husks were piled up at the mouth of the door, he silently thanked god that there were only 3 that came after him. Shepard was talking to Tali, they both had their omni-tools glowing. Feral jumped over the mound of bodies.

"Nice of you to join us again, have fun swimming?" Garrus chuckled, the sight of the soggy super soldier was pretty amusing and even Ashley couldn't help crack a smile at that.

"Ha ha laugh it up turian, you weren't the one to get thrown down a tube and have your face scratched open by a robotic zombie" Feral growled back at Garrus, he wasn't really annoyed at him, but the water running down his back was cold.

"So….missile to the face is still up for discussion but husk to the face is confirmed" the turian purred. That comment made Feral laugh.

"So what's going on?" Feral finally asked "Why are we still here?"

"Other than waiting for you to drag yourself out of that hole." Ash piped up, grinning playfully at Feral "We figured something out." Feral just raised his eyebrow at that, waiting for the gunnery chief to tell him this revelation.

"None of the bases we hit have been the base of operation, they've all been outposts. So Tali and Shepard are scanning for anything that could point us towards the final base"

No sooner than Ash had finished her sentence, Shepard looked back at the group and called for them to head out to the Mako. They had found a signal to follow and the Normandy was coming to pick them up. The squad quickly started to file out of the cave. Tali waited for Feral before they both walked out together.

"You ok?" Tali asked Feral, pointing to the blood on his face

"Yh, a husk just tried to give me a shave that's all" Feral smiled back the young woman, they had chatted briefly in the morning but this was the first chance they had gotten to really talk again.

Tali giggled "Well…at least you got a bath. All that synthetic blood was making you smell even worse than usual" she drew out her words slightly, letting the synthesiser vibrate the sounds she made.

Feral just laughed and stuck his tongue out at Tali, the pair just laughing and talking to each other as they made their way back to the Normandy. Something that didn't go unnoticed by Shepard, inwardly smiling as the friends clambered back into the Mako. He was glad to see Feral was quickly making friends amongst the squad; he had quickly fitted in with the two dextro-amino aliens.

- Solcrum, the moon of Notanban. Grissom System –

The Mako drop had been fun, clinging on for dear life as Shepard dodged Geth rocket troopers and a few Colossi was proving to be a very bouncy ride. Luckily for them Shepard hadn't rammed into any of the giant geth war machines; Ash was starting to prove very handy with the turret and had taken them out without too much trouble. The mako pulled to a halt in front of the Geth base, the squad grabbing their equipment as they jumped out onto the moon.

Feral had managed to convince the requisitions officer to get him a recon hood, he hated the helmets and the hood was easily storable in one of his pockets. The squad quickly moved across the moon's surface and into the main entrance of the base. Feral pulled off his recon hood, stuffing it into one of the pockets on his thigh. Garrus pulled off his helmet as well, putting it down on a crate by the entrance. He hated the thing as well, preferring his visor over the constricting headwear.

Shepard quickly pulled up his combat optics, the Geth were jamming his radar and he signalled towards Feral. Feral quickly worked to override the signal, using a software loop hole to cancel it out. The Geth would figure it out eventually but it gave them time to plan ahead. Shepard could see movement on his radar, plenty of movement. They were in for a fight. Feral and Tali prepared overloads, ready to unleash them on the first Geth platforms they saw so Garrus, Ash and Shepard could quickly destroy the effected units.

This time it was Garrus at the door, his hand hovering over the switch with his sniper rifle in his right hand. Looking at Shepard as he waited for the go command.

"Careful Garrus, if you're unlucky maybe I'll get to see if you can take a husk to the face" Feral smirked at the turian who just rolled his eyes at the super soldier. Garrus was smiling to himself, he had deserved that.

Shepard snorted before holding up his right hand and counting down from three using his fingers, grabbing the pistol grip on his rifle again as Garrus hit the door panel. Feral and Tali ran in first, throwing their overloads at the nearest Geth to them before ducking under the first panel. Ashley and Shepard shooting over their heads before they ran forward, past the two technicians as they unfolded their weapons. Garrus moving towards them as he started to provide sniper cover for the team, the loud cracks occasionally followed by a synthetic screech when a round managed to penetrate a unit's shield.

Feral and Tali were moving along one side of the room, while Shepard and Ashley moved along the other. The two teams moving carefully, one in cover providing suppressing fire while the other moved. Whenever they could Tali or Feral would knock a Geth's shield out or sabotage their software systems. Providing a small amount of confusion amongst the Geth as friend briefly became foe. Shepard and Ash were taking the brunt of the Geth attack, while Feral and Tali slowly flanked the units.

They moved through the room quickly. The tech team taking out the Geth's shields whilst the Fire team would put an end to the platform. Occasionally a platform would try to neutralise the tech team, an effort which was rewarded by Tali's shotgun or Feral tackling the platform into the ground, or a wall, and tearing out something very important. Tali overloaded another Geth's shields, watching as the synthetics head erupted in an explosion of metal and sparks as a sniper round barrelled through its optical unit. The fire team slowly made its way to the entrance of the stair well where Shepard called for the squad to regroup. They could hear the Geth units on the top level and it was going to be a fight up the stairs and onto the balcony. Shepard decided told Feral to stay behind, he was going to make sure that nothing snuck up behind them because the Geth units had figured out his software bypass and they were being jammed again. Feral just nodded and stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching the squad move on without him.

He could hear the sound of gunfire and shouting as they squad moved above him, he was scanning his eyes around the large room until finally the rumbling stopped. He heard the all clear from Shepard and received a call over his radio.

"Feral, I'm sending Tali back down. When she gets there I want you two to head over to the room at the end of the building. The Geth database is in there, grab anything you can off it." Shepard's voice came over the radio loud and clear, Feral just acknowledged his order and waited for Tali.

The small woman eventually came bouncing down the stairs, and the two walked off towards the end of the room. Feral had his rifle out but Tali had put her shotgun away, the room was small and if anything was there one rifle would take care of it. He entered the room with his rifle raised and quickly scanned all the corners of the room before looking back at Tali. "All clear" he smiled back at her. Keeping his rifle in his hands as they walked to the console and Tali started working.

"Anything good?" Feral asked as he watched her hands tap at the keyboard.

"I don't know yet Feral, I'm good but I'm not as fast as you buuut luckily because I'm a Quarian I actually know what I'm looking for" she teased, it was true. Feral really wouldn't know what was important over what wasn't and because of it, he'd have spent a lot longer downloading more data. So Feral just stood back and watched as the woman worked.

He smiled as he watched her, Tali really was the first true friend he'd made on the Normandy. She just felt right to be around and he had yet to finish a conversation with her on a sour note. He relaxed slightly, letting his weapon drop down to his side. Something he instantly regretted as he heard a crackling behind him.

A Geth hunter had been cloaked, waiting for the perfect time to strike. Feral hadn't noticed it until it was too late; the bastard hadn't made a single sound. No breathing, no heart beat and no movement. A perfect ambush when coupled with the incredible optical camouflage. Feral spun around as fast as he could, but a metal fist crashed into his cheek turning him back around. The rifle sitting loosely in his hand had been smacked out of his fingers by the hunter's foot. Feral was reaching for his combat knife when an arm came around his shoulder; he barely had time to bring his arm up as the geth wrapped a mechanical limb around his neck. Feral noticed the Geth was raising his weapon and he brought his hand down onto it, preventing the hunter from taking aim at Tali.

The two were locked in a perfect stalemate; Feral could hear the hunter's limbs whirring as it tried to overcome Feral's strength. Feral was trying desperately to move the hunter's arm, but he couldn't. He was splitting his strength between holding the Geth's weapon down and keeping its arm from squeezing onto his carotid artery which would knock him unconscious. If he moved at all, the Geth would get a shot off at Tali.

Tali had spun around at the commotion, pulling up her pistol and aiming it at the Geth. The fight had been over as soon as it had begun and now she watched as Feral struggled with the hunter. "Feral!" she cried out as she tried to get a shot at the Geth's head, but it was perfectly behind Feral, she couldn't hit it without shooting Feral. Feral was gasping for breath, she could see the muscles in his arms shaking slightly as he fought with the unit.

"Turns out these buggers are stronger than they look" Feral laughed breathlessly

"Feral I can't get a shot, you need to move" Tali shouted back loudly, she wasn't finding this funny and she couldn't radio for help. She couldn't risk a one handed grip on her pistol.

Feral was grunting as he held his position "Sorry Tali, if I do that he'll get a shot at you. If I try to move its arm from my neck it'll be able to raise its weapon. If I try to get its weapon it'll knock me out. Either way you end up dead." He closed his eyes for a second before looking back at Tali.

"There is one option though, you need to shoot me."

Tali just looked at him wide eyed "What? NO!"

"I'm going to overload both of our shields, and when I do. You need to put a round straight into my forehead." She could see his eyes, they were deadly serious and when he saw his omni-tool light up she started shake.

"F-Feral no…I can't!"

"Tali you can. You have to, the round will take us both out and even if it doesn't I'll drop. You'll get a clear shot then. Don't worry I'll be fine Tali. Just make it clean and I'll be back in no time" Feral was starting to pant more, the synthetic was starting to win; its muscles didn't tire and the longer this went on the sooner it would break the stalemate.

"Tali I can't hold him much longer. Please, you have to. If you die because I didn't see this thing I'll never forgive myself" He was pleading for her to do it, he never wanted to put her in this position. But it was their only option. Shepard wouldn't arrive in time. "Tali I'll be fine, you can do it. I believe in you"

"I'm so sorry" Tali said as she raised her weapon, she watched as Feral closed his eyes. He was sparing her having to look at him as she shot him. She was shaking as she waited for Feral.

"DO IT!" Feral screamed as he activated the overload

Shepard's squad was on the floor above when they heard the shot ring out. They started running back downstairs as fast as they could.

The Geth Hunter had been listening to the entire conversation between the two organics. Running diagnostics on the situation. It knew it would eventually break the stalemate on its organic hostage. It never believed the creator would follow through with the other's demands; the odds were in its favour. Her behaviour suggested she was too closely attached to the man and its runtimes concluded she wouldn't kill him just to kill it. Eventually it would win, it would kill them both.

That was the synthetics demise, the round passed straight through Feral's skull and into its optical unit as both of their shields went down. The bullet then entered its processing component; the last image the hunter ever saw was the splattering of blood on its optics.

The two collapsed, Feral's head flying back and striking the hunter before he collapsed off to the side and the hunter fell back into the wall.

Tali was in shock, she had watched the whole thing in what felt like slow motion. The bullet entering Feral's forehead before a red splattering covered the hunter as its head sparked, white material splashing at all over the wall. She watched her friend and the enemy crumple over onto the ground and she froze. Had Feral been lying about surviving the shot? He wasn't moving, he wasn't even breathing and she wasn't close enough to see if the hole was closing up behind the tuft of hair that covered his face. As Shepard, Ash and Garrus burst into the room, she felt a tear run down her cheek.

The three stared at the scene in front of them. Feral and a Geth platform were lying on the floor, blood; both synthetic and organic was sprayed all over the wall. Tali was standing in front of it, her pistol smoking as her hands shook. Shepard thought he heard a small sob come from the quarian as Ashley rushed forward to her, grabbing the pistol and pulling the woman into her arms. Garrus just let his weapon hang at his side, his jaw hanging at the scene in front of him.

Every knew what had happened, nothing needed to be said. The sound of Tali crying filled the room, as Shepard walked over to Feral. The commander crouched down and rolled the man onto his back, looking down at the super soldier. Nothing, he was completely limp. No signs of life at all. He sighed; he couldn't believe Feral had been killed so easily.

He moved over to shut his eyes, the force of the gun shot had knocked them open slightly and that was when the commander noticed something. The bullet hole in Feral's head wasn't going all the way through, the commander stopped at that. He had only heard one shot, Tali had definitely only fired once. But how where they both dead?

Suddenly Feral's hand shot up as he inhaled sharply, his entire body tensing up as neurones started firing again. The hole in his head rapidly healing as the surge of adrenaline caused by his system restart sent everything into overdrive. His eyes darting around wildly in his skull as he squirmed on the floor. Shepard grabbed onto Feral's shoulders to hold him down. He could've sworn he heard Garrus scream behind him.

After a few moments, Feral collapsed back onto the floor panting loudly. His hand still gripping tightly at the commander's armour. He groaned loudly, finally speaking up

"Hey Shepard, what's up?" his hand quickly snapping to his head as he moaned loudly "Fuck me sideways, god my head's killing me" Shepard stood up, dragging to the super soldier to his feet.

"Are you going to be ok?" Shepard slowly asked, he was keeping his cool in front of his squad but he's wasn't entirely sure he'd just lost it and this was all in his mind.

"You ever have a headache so bad it feels like someone just shot you in the head?" Feral groaned, covering his eyes from the lights of the room. "Just give me a minute, I'll be fine"

Shepard just stood back and looked at the man, he'd been telling the truth. He could take a straight shot to the head, he knew he had told Tali as well but he was sure the quarian would give him grief over not telling her how long it would take.

Feral was slowly starting to uncover his eyes, blinking rapidly as he looked up and around the room. "Hey Garrus, seen a ghost recently?" he laughed. The Turian was standing there with his eyes as wide as a turian could possibly get them, his jaw practically hanging around his ankles

"Yh….you could say that, unless I haven't actually gone insane and everyone else is seeing a dead guy standing up" he looked over at Shepard who just nodded.

Feral was laughing, a big smile on his face until his eyes finally fell on Tali. He could hear her breathing, it was ragged. 'Oh god' His smile dropped before he turned to Shepard.

"Could you give Tali and I a moment?" he asked quietly

Shepard nodded, gesturing for Ashley and Garrus to leave the room. Ashley paused briefly to make sure Tali was ok with it, the quarian nodding before she left the room. The three quickly hurried back to the mako, they didn't want to be around for this. Plus they didn't want to be witnesses for what occurred, she did have a shotgun.

"Tali I-"Feral was instantly cut off by three fingered hand striking him in the side of the face, Tali slapped him before she started pounding her fists on his chest.

"YOU BOSH'TET! BOSH'TET! BOSH'TET!" she was shouting at him, screaming her lungs out at the man until finally her hits became weak and her voice devolved into crying. She just placed her hands on his chest as she sobbed.

Feral didn't say or do anything; he just let her run her course. Once she started crying against him, he slowly reached his hands around her and squeezed her against him, pulling her into a hug.

"I thought I had actually killed you" Tali sniffed as she slowly stopped crying, god she hated this suit. She couldn't even wipe away her own tears. "I thought you were really dead" her hands were trapped between her own chest and Feral's; she flattened her hands against his armour.

"I'm so sorry Tali" Feral finally said, she could hear the sadness in his voice "I never meant to scare you like that but I promise it was the only choice we had" the man leaned in and rested his head down against her visor, staring through the tinted glass and into Tali's glowing eyes. She looked up and saw his eyes staring back at her; she sighed as she leant forward and leaned against the strong human.

"I know….." she finally managed to utter "I'm sorry for hitting you"

Feral couldn't help it; he just started laughing causing Tali to look back at him.

"Please, you just shot me in the head. I don't think you need to apologize for hitting me" Feral was laughing even louder. Tali blushed at that, she didn't like the feeling of being made fun of and she especially hated being reminded of what she'd done to Feral. But hearing him laugh….it was infectious. Even when she was mad at her friend, it made her smile.

"Bosh'tet." Tali thumped her fist against her armour and pushed herself out of Feral's embrace. Turning away from him as she started to walk out, stopping briefly to look back at Feral. "You ever try something like that again and I'll use my shotgun instead" she giggled to herself, keeping her auditory unit offline for her little laugh. She wanted Feral to think she was mad at him still but somehow, the smile on his face said he knew otherwise.

Feral watched the woman walk out of the room, chuckling to himself as he rubbed his forehead. He turned around to pick up his rifle, kicking the hunter's body before he started to walk out. He then stopped...the console. The data had been downloaded but in the heat of the moment, it had been forgotten. Feral walked up to the terminal and hit the transfer button.

- SSV Normandy, an hour later –

The story about Feral had circulated the entire ship, everyone was talking about it. No one fully believed the story and it was starting to get worse. How, on a ship the size of the Normandy, a story of Feral surviving a single bullet to the head had mutated into Feral being blown to pieces and then completely reforming was beyond him. He'd had to ask Garrus and Joker later. Shepard had asked Feral to see Chakwas, he wanted to make sure the soldier's brains were still intact and Feral didn't feel like arguing. Feral also asked about the data he had retrieved, Shepard had taken a copy and told Feral that his idea was a good one.

Feral was finally given a clean bill of health by Dr. Chakwas, who had sat him down and given him every brain test known to the humanity. She commented that the fact he was a soldier and didn't really need a brain was probably a big help. Chakwas had a sense of humour for a doctor, but Feral could tell she cared deeply about everyone on board.

As he was leaving Kaidan had walked into the med bay, clutching his head in agony. "Hey Feral, Hey Doc." He managed to groan "Migraine again" he slowly made his way to one of the tables and laid down on it.

"I got shot in the head and you have a migraine?" Feral managed to snort out.

Chakwas replied for the biotic "Alenko here has an L2 implant, his side effect is one of the most docile possible but it still kicks him down for a few hours" Feral nodded at that, he had known some people with L2's before his abduction. Kaidan was lucky to just get a migraine.

Feral made his way down to the engineering room, groaning loudly the entire trip down the elevator. As he walked through the lower deck towards the drive core he saw a crowd again around Garrus and Ashley, and this time even Wrex was listening. Feral just groaned again, smiling as he shook his head, he wanted to intervene. Stop anymore mutations to the already blown out of proportion story but he had other fish to fry…so to speak.

He quickly stepped into the engine room to avoid the group seeing him; he spotted Tali at her station and made his way over to her. "Hey there Tali" she said as he leant against the railing next to her

"I'm still mad at you" she growled out, a slight tease in her voice

Feral bit his lip to stop him from smiling too much, the woman was cute when she was angry. Less cute and more terrifying when she had her shotgun though. "I know I know" Feral put his hands up defensively. "So let me make it up to you"

"Oh? and how are you going to do that? Let me shoot you in the foot?" She looked over at him, and Feral could see her cocking an eyebrow. He really hoped that she was joking but somehow he as doubting it.

"Well…actually I had another idea. You know the data on that terminal you were downloading? Before the whole…situation with the Geth?"

"…..Keelah! I forgot to transfer it to my omni-tool" she slapped her visor, growling angrily "There was so much good information on that! The fleet would've killed to get it! DAMN IT!" She shouted, ignoring Feral as she verbally berated herself.

"Tali?...TALI!" Feral shouted, the quarian snapping back towards him "I didn't forget though, and I asked the commander, when I handed it over to him, if I could give you a copy" Feral cocked his head slightly before his omni-tool lit up, quickly followed by her own "he said yes" he grinned as the quarian watched as the data streamed into her omni-tool. All of it, it was all there. She had something to give to the fleet, she couldn't believe it. Her pilgrimage was over.

"So…we good?" Feral finally said, smiling gently at Tali

Tali was speechless, beyond happy and she had to bite her lip gently to stop herself from squealing like a prepubescent human school girl. "Yes….yes we're good Feral. I have my pilgrimage gift now, thank you" she smiled up at the man whose face suddenly dropped.

"Does that mean you'll be leaving?" Feral was happy that he'd done something good for her but he didn't want her to go quite yet. He'd need his friend to help get him through this mission.

"What? Oh…oh no. How could I? The galaxy is still in danger after all. First Saren, my pilgrimage can wait until that bosh'tet is dead." She replied firmly, she meant it. Tali wasn't going anywhere quite yet.

"Good" Feral sighed happily as he stepped off towards his terminal "By the way, if you shoot him in the head he'll definitely die!" he called over from his computer before laughing to himself

"You're such a bosh'tet" Tali just replied back to him, earning an even louder laugh from the man. Her friend, her friend who had just given her the best gift she'd ever received. For the second day in a row, she stood at her terminal smiling. Smiling because of the insane human who had been the best friend she'd ever had.


	8. Drinks, Food, Sharpies and Names

Feral was sitting in the Normandy's mess hall, he was off duty for the next few hours and with the Normandy's computer systems fully scrubbed and cleaned, he was finally able to catch a break. When he'd been moving out of the engine room, Ashley and Garrus had grabbed him. The last time they had stopped on the citadel apparently the two had grabbed some drinks and with everything as quiet as it was, they'd asked him to join them.

Shepard was off running an errand for Wrex, he'd taken along Liara and Tali to go and pick up some ceremonial armour for the krogan. The commander liked to keep his squad happy and on focus, a few days back they had finally tracked down Dr. Heart. The bastard Salarian had been holed up on some ship just floated through space before Shepard, Feral and Garrus had stormed the vessel. Garrus was clearly feeling a lot better knowing the Doctor was taken care of, but Feral could see he'd taken on Shepard's lesson. Shooting first was never the only answer, and Feral had told Garrus that there were worst things than death. He should know after all.

He was sitting at the main table, the Normandy's lights had dimmed and no one else was there, with Kaidan, Garrus and Ashley sitting round the table with him. The lieutenant had joined them when they came out of the elevator and they were currently listening to one of his Biotic Boot Camp stories. The group was drinking and laughing as they told their horror stories, Feral was just listening as he knocked back drink after drink, he had a smile on his face though. This reminded him of his days back in the Alliance with O'Hare.

Garrus had been counting the number of drinks Feral had downed and finally he nudged Ashley, who looked over and smirked at the human. "So Feral, you got any good stories?" Feral just looked back at the woman as he finished off his 8th shot.

Putting his glass back down on the table, he leant forward onto his forearms. "Well…there was this one thing I suppose I could tell you about" rubbing his face and noting that he would have to shave again in a little while as skin scratched his fingers. He could see Ashley and Garrus looking expectantly and even Kaidan was interesting, all three of them sitting forward slightly in their chairs.

"There was this one thing that happened to me, years ago. I got captured by Cerberus who then proceeded to do lots of pretty awful experiments on me and one of the results, and this is the really funny part. One of the very many results of their experiments is that I am now physically incapable of getting drunk and revealing embarrassing secrets about myself" Feral finally ended, picking up another shot and quickly downing it before slamming the shot glass back down onto the table. Smiling as Garrus and Ashley just let their jaws hang open.

"Seriously?..."Ashley slowly said

"Mhm, something to do with the way I process toxins" Feral shrugged as he sat back in his chair, Kaidan was just laughing next to him. The shocked looks on Ash and Garrus' faces were too much for the drunk biotic.

"So I bought Turian brandy and drank enough to give myself a hangover in the morning, in the hope that getting you drunk would make you spill a story or two about your past…."Garrus slurred slightly, he rested his head on one of his hands. "And you're going to wake up tomorrow and not feel a thing?..." The turian just sighed as Feral nodded with a smirk on his face. "You're a bastard" the turians head slammed down into the table as he passed out.

Feral and Kaidan couldn't contain themselves and burst out laughing at the scene in front of them. Kaidan was a happy drunk and Feral just found the whole scene hilarious. Sighing Ashley just grabbed the entire bottle of whisky and took a swig, Feral had drunk enough of it on his own and it wouldn't do anything for him.

"So….is there anything else you can eat or drink that we should know about? In case we try to prank you for this" Ashley said slowly, resting her chin in one of her hands as she gripped the bottle in the other.

Feral chuckled before sitting forward again and resting his head on both of his hands. "I can eat just about anything, whether I'll like the taste is another matter" He said, Feral didn't mind revealing things like this. Being fed was hardly torture after all. "but the Cerberus scientists tested that pretty extensively as well. I can eat food that's gone off, even if it's starting to rot. I can eat dextro food and I can take most poisons as well. Like I said I process everything differently to a normal human and I can eat more or less anything. Apparently the scientists were keen on having a soldier that could survive in any environment purely on the environment" He finally shrugged as he looked at the drunk marine.

Ashley sighed as Kaidan laughed at her again. She had thought her plan with Garrus was sure to get Feral to loosen his lips and it had backfired very slightly on them. "So you can eat or drink anything? Even Dextro?" Feral just nodded his head more, sticking his tongue out playfully "Prove it then red, drink the rest of Garrus' brandy" She pointed awkwardly at the bottle, snapping her hand back to catch her head as it fell a little.

Feral looked confused for a second. 'Red?...I'm not ginger…oh the eyes right. Maybe I am getting a _little_ drunk' He chuckled, with the amount he had consumed. He wouldn't be surprised if his liver was getting overwhelmed but he reached forward and grabbed the turian brandy, sniffing it before he pressed it to his lips and down the rest of the bottle in one go. The liquid burning the back of his throat slightly before he put the bottle back down, grinning back at the very drunk Ashley.

The woman sighed; at least he had opened up about something. Even if the revelation was very irritating she just smiled back and finished the rest of her whisky. Hiccupping before laying her head down onto the table and passing out alongside her partner in crime. Feral sat back in his chair and brought his feet back up onto the table, leaning back as he smiled at the scene in front of him. This had been fun, even if he had no intention of revealing his backstory to more people just yet. This had been fun, after 4 years alone he felt like he was making friends again.

Kaidan patted Feral's shoulder as he shakily stood up "Nice drinking with you Feral, it's good to see you laughing. Maybe next time though you can actually tell us a story, mine are getting old." The biotic laughed as he stumbled off towards his sleeper pod.

Feral smiled as the man walked over, wincing as he watched him stumble over and hit his shin on the metal stairs.

"I'm ok! I'm ok!" Alenko picked himself up and eventually got into his sleep pod, leaving Feral alone in the mess hall.

He sat back more, looking up at the ceiling as he shuffled slightly in his chair. Getting as comfortable as possible as he closed his eyes. Smiling to himself as he thought about everything that had happened to him after he had been set free. Life was good again, everything was starting to normalise around his new physiology.

He sighed loudly, reaching into his back pocket and grabbing the chain inside it. Pulling out his old dog tags and letting them dangle above him. His information printed onto the metal catching the light of the dim room as they swung gently above him.

Alexander Lloyd; flashes of his family, his friends, his old squad. He missed them all, but was it really worth digging up the past? He'd been gone, presumed dead for 4 years. Would any of them even recognise him anymore?

15th May 2158; birthdays flashed through his mind. The last birthday before he'd been captured was his 21st; it was a massive occasion for his family. His new promotion, his transfer to special ops. It was something to celebrate. Months later he'd be on a planet, watching his friends die before he was dragged away to his own private hell.

He let the tags drop into his hands, quickly covering them as he rubbed the metal under his fingertips. He considered the options of telling his family…..maybe he could pretend to be someone else…..a friend who was giving the dog tags back. He quickly shook his head at that, there were too many risks. Someone could recognise him, and that could be disastrous. The Alliance would want an explanation. Scientists would want to find out about everything they could on his modifications.

No. Never again. Alexander Lloyd was presumed dead, he'd gone missing on that planet 4 years ago. His new squad knew him as Feral….his friends knew him as Feral. He'd never let who he was go, but the universe would have to. Operations Chief Alexander Lloyd was gone and Feral had taken his place. He finally smiled at that, putting his tags back into his back pocket. A new life, new friends and a new mission. Maybe one day when this was all over, Alex could reappear.

He sat back into his seat again, bringing his arms up to cradle his head as he closed his eyes and concentrated on the noises of the ship. He could first hear the sounds of Garrus and Ashley as they slept in front of him then he let them slip away before listening to the sound of the Normandy hum. The odd footstep of a crew member thumping along the metal as he drowned himself in the noise of the Normandy's engine. He could see why Tali found it so comforting, he nearly fell asleep when he heard the loud steps of 4 people, and one set was much heavier than the rest. Wrex.

Shepard and the team were back and as Feral could slowly hear the group talking as they drew closer he slowly opened his eyes. He saw Tali and Wrex immediately head towards to the elevator as Shepard and Liara walked towards the med bay, they were talking about nothing but he could see the smiles on their faces. Concentrating one last time he heard the sounds of their hearts and chuckled. 'Good for them' he smiled and looked over as they stopped walking.

"Hey Shepard, fancy a drink?" Feral smiled at his commander as the man and woman just stared at the scene in front of them. The mess hall table had several bottles all over it and the heads of Ashley and Garrus straight down into its metal. "I think there's some left in one of these things" he moved some of the bottles around with his feet before shrugging and looking back at the pair.

"What happened to them?" Shepard finally asked, Liara was just standing by him. Snickering slightly at the sight of the very proud people who had passed out head first onto the table.

"They tried to drink me into telling secrets" Feral grinned and Shepard laughed

"and then the whole 'you can't get drunk' thing happened?" He raised an eyebrow, Feral had told him about his inability to have a hangover when the commander had suggested he go to Flux to relax one time. Feral told him it was pointless because drinking alone would do nothing for him.

Shepard turned and looked at Liara "Go get some rest, we can talk more in the morning" he smiled at her, getting a smile in return as the Asari walked off to her small office behind the med bay. Feral said goodnight and got a quick goodnight back before she disappeared and Shepard sat down in the seat next to him. Still in his armour but putting his weapons carefully onto the table before he looked through the bottles.

"So…you and Dr T'soni…?" Feral raised an eyebrow at his commander, a cheeky smile on his face

Shepard sighed before laughing quietly, sitting back when he finally found a slightly full bottle and pouring himself a fresh glass. Offering it to Feral who just shook his head "You have no idea how much I drank before I told them" he laughed, joined by Shepard as they both sat back. Shoulders pointed towards each other slightly.

"So seriously, you and Liara." Feral said again, earning a small glare from his commander "Hey I opened up to you about worse stuff than having a crush, plus it's pretty obvious. Even if you're not me people will start to piece it together."

Shepard sighed, of course the super human senses of Feral would pick up…well he probably didn't want to know what they picked up on. "I don't know, maybe. She's going through a lot with her mother at the moment and with this mission. Who knows?" he took a swig from his glass "She's a wonderful woman though, stronger than anyone gives her credit for as well"

Feral smiled, it was nice to just chat to Shepard, but it was also fun to start getting him to open up about himself. God knows he'd made Feral spill his guts during their many talks together. "The Asari definitely are a beautiful species as well, if that's what you're after. Thought I notice you said she's wonderful. Not stunning or sexy or beautiful or…..god I wish I had a thesaurus BUT either way" Feral waved his hands slightly in the air for effect "You really care about her don't you? You actually like Liara the person, not just Liara the Asari" Feral smirked again, god he was acting like he was in back in boot camp.

Shepard smiled as he quickly took in Feral's words. "Who knew you could be romantic Feral. Does Tali know about this?" he rose an eyebrow back at the red eyed man who just laughed it off, although Shepard did notice a small hint of a blush on the man's pale cheeks.

"Yh because asking her to blow my brains out totally counts as a first date" the two shared a laugh, Shepard taking another swig of his whiskey "and besides I'm British Shepard. Romantic is practically engrained into…well…most of us anyway. It's been diluted over the centuries but you still find it occasionally"

Feral chuckled before a small smile returning to his face "Seriously though, Liara likes you too Shepard. If you two wanted you could make a go of it no problem"

"You're nose tell you that about her?" Shepard looked over the top of his glass

"A gentleman never sniffs and tells Shepard" Feral stuck out his tongue, putting on a very fake posh voice for a moment before the two shared yet another laugh. "No I don't need to do any of that to know it. It's the way she looks at you whenever you're in the room; she practically follows you around and ignores everyone else. Plus you saved her from a ruin Shepard; there are enough clichés in that alone."

Shepard smiled at that, looking over to the door of the med bay. Maybe Feral was right, and if he was only time would tell. For now though, he had to get Garrus and Ashley into their sleep pods. "Give me a hand with them will you Feral?" he downed the rest of his drink before putting the glass on the table; they could get someone else to clean that in the morning.

Feral nodded and pulled his feet off the table, moving around and pushing Garrus' left arm over his shoulder. Lifting the sleeping turian up onto his feet "Come on buddy, let's get you into your pod" the turian just mumbled as he looked at Feral through half lidded eyes, groaning as Feral patted his chest as one of them started to walk towards the pods.

Despite Ashley weighing a lot less than Garrus, Shepard was having a harder time than Feral. The super human eventually just grabbed at Garrus' waist and hoisted his feet off the ground after dragging him a few feet. Shepard still couldn't believe how strong the man was, even after watching him punch holes in husk's heads and tearing chunks out of Geth Platforms. The things he could do still amazed him, other than his deep red eyes. Nothing about the man seemed out of place…..until you watched him pick up a Turian with one arm like he was a paper weight.

Eventually the two unconscious soldiers were in their pods, Shepard wouldn't discipline them. He could tell the hangovers and annoyance of not beating Feral would be enough to put them back in line. Though maybe he'd get a chance to shout a lot tomorrow, make them think twice before drinking that much again. The men walked off, Feral towards the elevator and Shepard towards his quarters, a quick goodnight between the two men as they headed in their separate directions.

Feral took the elevator down, groaning as he thumped his head into the wall as the box slowly moved downwards. Hopping out he noticed Wrex was still awake, polishing the armour they had retrieved while they had been gone. He swore he could see a smile on the Krogans face…or at least the krogan equivalent anyway. Smiling as he walked off into the engine room, grabbing his cot off from behind the railing before he walked into the dimly light, blue tinted humming room.

He stepped down the left hand walkway quietly as he saw Tali was already curled up on her cot; he gently walked across the room. Unfolding the makeshift bed as quietly as he could before putting it down onto the deck. He sat down on his bed before looking up; he was about to flop over when he saw her shivering very slightly. The engine room was kept colder than the rest of the Normandy and it was only Feral's high metabolism that was keeping him warm at the moment, Tali must've knocked off her blanket.

He sighed as he stood up and tiptoed across the room again, standing over the woman as she slept before grabbing her blanket and pulling it up over her shoulders. He smiled as he watched her cuddle in and pull the blanket around her tightly in her sleep. He was sure he saw her eyes flicker slightly through her visor, chuckling as he wondered what she was dreaming of. "Hope it's better than my dreams Tali, at least I put my knife away" he laughed quietly to himself as he wandering back over to his cot, taking one final glance at the sleeping quarian before he pulled his blanket up over his head. Blocking out as much light as he could as he fell asleep.

Shepard had taken off all his armour and gotten into his service dress, the commander had taken a quick shower to get rid of the layer of sweat generated by wearing the thick plated armour. Checking his terminal quickly for any important messages. He'd gotten one from Captain Anderson, he opened it and his eyes opened wide at the small precise email.

'Shepard, I think I have something on Feral. Come to the Citadel as soon as you can'

Shepard sat there for a minute, he hated prying. Feral wasn't just an unknown soldier anymore, not to him anyway. Was it right to pry?...Shepard sighed, he had to know what Anderson had found. He could make a decision then. He reached over and pressed the intercom.

"Joker, set a course for the citadel"

"Aye aye commander, route set. ETA 5 hours." Joker shut off the intercom, by the sound of it he'd been sleeping. Sleep sounded like a wonderful idea the commander thought as he crawled onto his bed.

- The Citadel, 6 hours later -

Shepard had given the crew shore leave for the next few hours; they could come and go from the Normandy as they pleased. He had used the intercom from his room to boom his voice around the ship, stepping out into the mess hall soon after. He could see Garrus and Ashley holding their heads and holding drinks as they tried to stave off their hangovers. Unsurprisingly they elected to stay aboard the Normandy.

Wrex said that he had some business to attend to and considering he was taking his weapons with him, the commander didn't even bother asking. Telling the krogan not to destroy too much, kill too many people and to come back in one piece. The krogan just laughed as he stomped out of the Normandy.

Tali, Kaidan and Feral were sitting at the mess hall table. They were going to hang out around the presidium later, both Tali and Feral thought it best to avoid the markets and the general area around them in case C-Sec were keeping an eye out for them. Kaidan had a small hangover and just wanted to enjoy the fresh air, he was coping much better than either Ash or Garrus though. At least he could still move and look at towards the light.

Garrus was asking, albeit very slowly, what had happened after he had passed out and Feral was telling him. Ashley was adding to the story whenever she could remember something and Kaidan was a little embarrassed to hear about how much he had been laughing. He'd never realised how much a happy drunk he was. Tali was just laughing, she wished that she could've been there to see this all unfold but watching Feral and Kaidan retelling it was a lot of fun.

Ash had really really hoped Feral had been bluffing about being able to take dextro foods, but he here was. No hangover and no upset stomach. Once she could actually hear things without it sounding like a claw running down a chalk board she'd have to ask what else he could do. 20 questions would be the most interesting game in the world with Feral.

Breakfast had been slightly eventful, when Garrus and Tali found out Feral's ability to eat anything they had offered him some of the nutrient paste the Normandy had stocked for them. They had gotten used to its taste but they wondered how Feral would take it. The easy was plain and simple, not well. Feral had squeezed the tube and taken some into his mouth, his eyes bulging slightly and his face grimacing as he eventually starting chewing. Tali was biting her lips to stop herself from laughing to loudly at the poor man, who eventually just mumbled through his lips "Excuse me" and ran off to the bathroom.

Feral eventually returned and sat back down. "That…..." he gulped "sorry I just threw up in my mouth a little" he coughed a few times, grabbing Ashley's drink and downing it in one.

"HEY! Ow" she clutched her head as the light and sound of her own voice made it feel like her skull had exploded.

"That was horrifying…..please tell me you guys can get actual food as well" Feral was still grimacing, Kaidan had begun laughing and eventually Tali joined in, squeaking slightly as she stopped herself long enough to answer Feral.

"Yes of course we can, but this is the easiest and cheapest" she replied

"Yh fuck that we're buying you some good stuff today" Feral stood up "Come on, it's about time we got off the Normandy"

Tali and Kaidan just looked at each and quickly jumped up after the man who had suddenly disappeared. "Feral?" They jolted around as he stepped out of the bathroom.

"Sorry I just….cleaned the toilet with my tongue to get the taste out of my mouth" he coughed again slightly, wincing at the lingering taste of that awful stuff. The three quickly started walking up and off the Normandy, Kaidan and Tali just laughing as they walked behind Feral. Eventually they found themselves in the elevator, Feral in typical fashion was beating his head into the door.

"So…I thought you two were avoiding the markets today and now we're going to buy food?" Kaidan eventually piped up as the thumping of Feral's skull was the only noise in the slow elevator.

Tali was going to reply, he had a point. What was Feral thinking when he came up with that idea. "Yh that's what I thought too…Feral?" she looked over to the grumbling human.

"Yh we're avoiding the markets like the plague today Tali buuut…." Kaidan knew where this was going immediately "Kaidan doesn't have a C-Sec poster with his face on it down there no does he?" Feral rested his head on the door before turning his head and spinning around to grin at the biotic.

Kaidan sighed "Oh come on, you are not going to make me your errand boy!"

"ME?" Feral scoffed "No I'd never dare do that but Tali?" he quickly stepped behind her and held her by the shoulders and turned her towards Kaidan "Tali has a shotgun" He rested his head on her shoulder and smiled towards Kaidan.

Kaidan just blinked as the man hid behind Tali, grinning like an evil Cheshire Cat. "She left her shotgun on the Normandy Feral" he raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms

Feral's grin disappeared before he pouted "You really wouldn't do this little thing for our poor dextro-amino friends? That food is so bad and all they want for Christmas is too have good food, AND YOU CAN GIVE THEM THAT!" He was grinning like an idiot again, nodding his head as he held it level with Tali's.

Tali was just biting her lips, desperately trying not to laugh at Feral's ridiculous antics.

"Feral…it's not Christmas and since when do I look like Santa Claus?"

"Well I don't know, shove a pillow up your shirt, put a beard on and wear a red hat and ask me then" Feral stuck his tongue out at Kaidan "All Tali ever wanted was good food to eat, and if she doesn't have it she'll be so sad" Feral gently cupped the bottom of her helmet and wiggled her head gently to emphasize his point "Every time she looks at you all you'll see is her unhappy face and it'll be all your fault"

"Feral" Kaidan sighed, he really couldn't believe he was going along with this game "I can't see her face…she has a tinted visor"

Feral just blinked blankly at the man before responding in a monotone voice "I'll draw one on it then so you can always see how unhappy you made her" Feral suddenly jumped back as Tali pushed his arms away and jumped to one side standing between the two.

"Keelah Feral! You think I'd just let you draw on my helmet?" Feral just nodded sheepishly, grinning again as he stood in the corner. She sighed loudly "I'm sorry Kaidan I didn't mean to let it get this silly"

"It's ok Tali, I know Feral is just playing around anyway" He smiled at the Quarian

"Yeah….but he is right, that paste is horrid." She looked down "I would really have liked to get some other things to eat but I guess it can wait." The sadness in her voice was more than apparent.

Kaidan went to say something but nothing came out, he just opened and closed his mouth before finally sighing and rubbing his face "Ok fine….I'll go down to the markets and grab something"

Tali looked up, bouncing slightly on the spot at the lieutenant's words. "Really? I mean you don't have to I wasn't trying to guilt you into going" she was rubbing her hands together as she fidgeted slightly, hope resounding through her speaker.

"No really its fine, just tell me what you'd like and I'll grab it" Kaidan sighed, briefly looking over at Feral who was biting his own finger trying not to laugh and then it hit him. Tali had tricked him into going down into the markets for her. Feral was a terrible influence on the young woman but he couldn't help but smile.

When the elevator finally stopped, Kaidan stepped out first. He had what Tali had asked for on his omni-tool. "I'll see you two later ok?" he waved as he stepped off and walked off towards another elevator that would take him to the markets.

Tali just waved back as the biotic walked off, she then turned around and watched as Feral slowly walked up to her. His finger was still in his mouth and his face was distorted slightly before he breathed deeply and looked straight down at her.

"You're evil" he started laughing, wiping his eyes slightly as tears had built up from him trying to hold it back.

"Hey! It was use the helpless woman ploy or have you draw on my helmet" she crossed her arms and smiled back at him for a few seconds before laughing as loudly as Feral was. She finally sighed as they both stopped laughing. "I do hope Kaidan won't be angry I did that though, it was rather selfish of me"

"Tali, he didn't have to go. He realised he'd been duped the moment he saw me biting my finger and yet he's still gone" Feral smiled down at her, tilting her head up to look at him "Trust me, he'll get over it…..plus I'd rather have him lecture me for a while than have you shoot me with your shotgun for drawing on your helmet" Feral just tapped the glass in front of her nose as he started to walk off towards the presidium lake.

Tali quickly ran up to him and walked beside him, looking over at him as she walked "You weren't really going to draw on my visor were you?" she was answered by Feral holding up a small black tube with a lid on it. "…is that?"

"Mhm" he nodded, he put it back in his pocket as fast as he'd gotten it out

"You planned all of this?" Tali shook her head

"Let's just say if you hadn't joined in when you did, you'd be a rather annoyed young woman right about now and we wouldn't be walking this close together" he smiled playfully as she just stopped and stared at his back as he wandered off.

"Bosh'tet"

"Awwwwww but you love me really Tali" he winked and stuck his tongue out at her as he spun around 360 degrees on the spot, before walking off towards the artificial lake again.

Tali just watched as the man walked off, laughing at his previous statement. She rubbed her hands together for a few seconds as she looked down at her feet. Her eyes only jolting up again when she heard his voice shouting across the presidium.

"HEY TALI! IF YOU DON'T HURRY UP I'M GOING TO COME BACK THERE AND CARRY YOU!" Feral shouted as he stood a way ahead of her.

Tali just smiled, she briefly considered just waiting for him to come and scoop her up but instead she just giggled and ran after her ridiculous friend.

- Ambassador Udina's Office –

"Shepard, it's good to see you again" Anderson was waiting for the commander, shaking his hand as the two friends smiled at each other.

"It's good to see you too sir" Shepard smiled back; it really was good to see his old XO. He was someone he knew he could always count on. "I suppose you know why I'm here though"

Anderson sighed "Yes, you got my message" he looked around before pulling Shepard into a quieter corner of the office "I have to admit Shepard it's not much but…I may have found some possible names. It's nothing concrete though, those files are locked up tighter than a Volus' suit."

Shepard looked confused "If they are that securely locked away how'd you get the names?"

"You told me that he went missing 4 years ago, so I looked for anyone whose service ended during that time. After that I looked at MIAs and KIAs and noticed something odd. 9 men. Their records are black listed and I can't actually see anything on them but I did get a look at the time stamp. It was dated a few days after Kahoku deployed that platoon for a search mission." Anderson quickly followed up, noting the nod from Shepard to continue

"I know they are only names and like I said I can't do anything without further evidence. Unless one of these names does belong to Feral and you can prove that with 100% accuracy, the records will remain sealed. No picture, no service record. Nothing." He finished

"But 9 men?...thats a very odd number" shepard inwardly groaned at the accidental pun

"I thought so too Shepard, but then I got thinking. What if our theory on a special operations team was right? 9 men would account for that. 8 team members and "

"A pilot. That means there would've taken a Kodiak" Shepard finished the Captains sentence

"Exactly! And it just so happens the SSV Cairo put in a requisition order for a new Kodiak a week after this all got locked down" Anderson finished, his intel was sound and he logic reasonable. It was a good lead, they may have only been names but it was very possible Feral's was amongst them.

Shepard nodded "Ok you've convinced me, show me the list" Anderson just gave Shepard the data pad and he looked down at the names written on it. 9 men's names and ranks were listed;

Captain H. Spencer

1st Lieutenant T. Jones

Flight Lieutenant K. Peterson

Operations Chief A. Lloyd

Service Chief T. Whitby

Specialist P. Mahoney

Corporal O. O'Hare

Private 1st Class R. Keene

Private 1st Class G. Ryan

9 men, 9 names that could belong to Feral. And with the records sealed, with no way opening them without proof of his identity. No pictures to compare to the man on his ship. Shepard sighed, it was the best they had.

"I know it looks like a long shot, but there are names we can cross off Shepard." Anderson said as the spectre looked down at the data pad. "You said he was 25, meaning he was 21 when he went missing. That alone means he couldn't have been the Captain or either of the lieutenants. It also means he's very unlikely to be one of the Chiefs."

Shepard nodded his head again "Yh you're right, if he is on here. He's most likely to be one of the last 4 names." But something was bothering Shepard, Feral was a skilled hacker. A very skilled hacker. "Although…that being said the Alliance has a tendency to shoot people up the ranks if they are incredibly talented at certain aspects. Feral is one of the most talented software technicians I've ever met, is it possible he could've been boosted up to NCO in order to help teach?" He looked up at Anderson.

"You're right" he finally managed to utter "I'm sorry I forgot about that Shepard and all that does is add 1 or 2 more names to the list of possible identities" he sighed "Sorry son, it's the best I can do for you."

Shepard shook his head "trust me this is more than I have, I'm still unsure whether he ever was Alliance at all. But…..I don't know. I need to be careful with this." Shepard thanked the Captain and left the office with the data pad securely in his back pocket. The names running through his mind as he worked his way back to the Normandy.

As he walked along the presidium towards the taxi parked outside, he saw Tali and Feral walking along the lake on the other side. He sighed loudly, just by mentioning any of these names he risked destroying every ounce of trust he'd built with Feral. He wouldn't react well to being effectively spied on either. He struggled to see how this could possibly end with a positive outcome as he got into the taxi and returned to the docking bay. Wondering whether or not there was any alcohol left from last night, god knows he needed one right now.


	9. Betrayal, Feros and an Identity Revealed

Shepard was sitting in his office, staring at the data pad with the list of possible names. The Normandy's crew were all back on board and they were currently on their way to Feros. They should arrive in a few hours and the commander wasn't looking forward to it. Not only did they have a massive Geth presence in the human colony but then there was the issue with the names. It would have to wait until after Feros though. If it went badly he couldn't afford to have Feral distracted on such a dangerous mission.

He sighed as the placed the pad back down onto his desk, rubbing his forehead before a voice came over the intercom on his terminal.

"Commander, can you come and talk to me in the med bay? I need to discuss the medi-gel shipments with you" Dr Chakwas' voice suddenly filled the room.

He leant forward and pressed the send button "Sure, I'll be there in a moment" He pushed his seat back and stood up as a 'thank you' came through the speaker again, stepping out and walking over to the med bay.

- Normandy's engine room –

Tali was sitting down next to an open panel on the floor, she was tapping at her omni-tool as strands of data ran across the holographic screen. "Are you nearly done yet?" she called down into the hole

A voice called back from deep inside the shaft, vibrating off the walls slightly "I still don't see why I had to do this Tali, you're smaller than I am" Feral was inside the shaft, pulling himself as he checked the connections. The two of them had detected a small glitch in the systems and they were currently trying to fix it.

"Yes, but~ you can see in the dark AND you owe me for making me trick Kaidan earlier" she purred back at the man, hearing a laugh vibrate back up into the room.

"Well touché on the seeing in the dark thing" Feral called, pausing briefly before carrying on "BUT! You did the tricking all by yourself" the sound of his voice was drowned out by a brief amount of fizzing. "How's that look?" he called up

Tali hit a few keys on her omni-tool before shouting back "That's it Feral, the glitch is gone" smiling as she heard Feral moving quickly back below the hole, his head popping up as he pushed himself up onto his ass.

"Little help?" he put his hand up and the quarian reached forward and grabbed his forearm. Hoisting him out back onto the floor, before the fitting the panel back in place. He stretched out as he stood up, before looking across as Tali transferred the report to a small data pad so she could take it to Shepard.

"Hey let me take that" he reached out a hand "Like you said I still owe you for 'making' you trick Kaidan" using quotation marks as he stepped up to Tali, noticing the look in her eyes "Oh come on don't tell me you didn't have fun" he leant in close, trying to peer through her visor.

Tali just froze slightly as the man got closer to her; he was so close that she could see his breath fogging up the glass on her helmet. Gulping as she felt one of his hands run up her forearm, her eyes darting between his eyes and his lips before suddenly he jumped away.

Feral waved the data pad in his hand playfully "Oh that was waaaay to easy Tali" he laughed as he walked away, smiling at how easily he'd managed to pry the data pad from her. He'd at least expected a playful fight but she'd just frozen up. He'd make sure her hadn't done something to offend her when he got back. He hurried out of the room, completely unaware of why Tali had actually frozen up.

Tali just stood in the middle on the engine room, blinking in her helmet as she felt her cheeks practically burst into flames. She knew he'd just been joking around. She knew none of that was meant to have been anything but one of Feral's games. 'Keelah….what was that?' she thought to herself, rubbing her hands together as she stepped back off to her terminal. Her mind racing as she couldn't get the image of Feral's kind eyes out of her head.

The familiar sound of Feral beating his head against the elevator door sounded out through the Normandy's mess hall, the crew were convinced he was one day going to put a hole straight through the metal and had starting betting on how soon it would happen. The managed to hold their laughs as Feral stepped towards the commander's office, but they all laughed when he asked how the bets were going as he strolled past.

Feral stood outside Shepard's quarters, knocking at the door before waiting. Humming to himself before he knocked again, still no answer. Shepard was out but he only had to drop the pad on his desk, so he tapped the door switch and stepped in. Humming a little louder as he placed the pad down onto his desk. He stopped in the middle of turning away. Had he….no he couldn't have. He looked back and slowly looked down at the data pad on Shepard's desk.

9 names were glowing on its screen, he recognised them all.

"Hey guys….long time no see" he sighed, his once happy exterior replaced by a blank stare. His eyes were lighting up, he couldn't believe it. Shepard had done the one thing he'd asked him not to; Shepard had been trying to discover his identity.

- 5 minutes later –

Shepard stepped out of Chakwas' office, his conversation with the good doctor had been riveting and he'd briefly stepped into Liara's office to prevent himself from committing suicide. He had a smile on his face again as he stepped out into the mess hall, nodding happily as he acknowledged the rest of the crew. His talk with Liara had once again strayed to the topic of 'us', and after his drink with Feral the commander was feeling more confident about their blossoming relationship. He'd have to talk to her again after the Feros mission.

Shepard missed what one of the crewman shouted over at him, he'd been too deep in thought to hear him and just said "Thank you" to whatever the man had said. He tapped the door to his office and stopped after taking just one step. Feral was sitting in the chair next to his desk, a data pad in his hands.

'Shit' just by the look on Feral's face he could tell it wasn't just a report. It was the list of names he'd gotten from Anderson. Sighing he slowly stepped in and let the doors close behind him, Feral finally looking up at him.

"Before you say anything Feral" he was cut off by the low, growling voice of the super human.

"No…No Shepard. I asked you to not try and find me" his eyes were glaring up at the commander. The rest of his face was calm, but his eyes were burning and his voice was humming from the deep growling in his throat. "…..how long have you had these names and where did you get them?"

Shepard gulped slightly, Feral was pissed but he wasn't showing it much. It could only mean one thing. He was deep in concentration, listening and smelling anything the commander gave off as a signal he was lying. Feral had the advantage here, and Shepard couldn't risk making him even angrier.

"I got them from Captain Anderson the last time we were on the Citadel." He said slowly, making sure he was confident in the facts before he said them. "Anderson used what little I had told him about you to track down anyone whose service record ended roughly 4 years ago. Around the time Kahoku deployed an entire platoon to an unknown planet, our reasoning was that..." again he was cut off

"the only reason the Admiral would devote so much time and resources is if a special operations team had gone MIA, presumed KIA." Feral finished for the commander, looking back down at the list of names. "That being said, you can eliminate some of these names immediately. Which ones have you stopped considering?" Feral needed to know if his real name was being suspected.

"Any of the names with a rank below lieutenant" Shepard just stated

Feral closed his eyes briefly 'Damn it, he's got me then…unless' "Have you gotten into their service records fully?"

"No, they are sealed shut under black ops and we can't open them without definitive proof you are one of those names" Shepard sighed, proof they'd probably never get at this point.

"Thank you for not lying commander" Feral growled out in a low, monotone voice as he threw the pad onto the desk. "I trusted you Shepard, I asked you not to dig" he looked up at the commander, a frown finally appearing on his face.

"I'm sorry Feral, I didn't mean for you to find out this way" Shepard said, he felt bad he really did. Feral had been a good friend to him over the past few weeks and he had betrayed his trust.

Feral suddenly rose out of the seat, the sudden bang of the chair hitting the wall made Shepard jump slightly before Feral shouted "HOW WAS I SUPPOSED TO FIND OUT SHEPARD?" snarling angrily, his canines rubbing against his bottom lip as he bared his teeth. "WHEN YOU FOUND OUT WHICH OF THOSE NAMES BELONGS TO ME? WHEN THE ALIIANCE COMES STORMING INTO THE ENGINE ROOM TO RECLAIM THEIR LOST PROPERTY?" he stood there for a moment, letting Shepard take in the words "WHEN SHEPARD?"

Shepard managed to speak back "You think I'd just hand you back over to them? Feral I wouldn't do that to you."

"AS IF YOU'D HAVE A FUCKING CHOICE!" Feral walked up to the commander and stood close enough for Shepard to see the fury in his eyes. "You find out my name Shepard, the alliance will take me. If you haven't noticed in my time away I've become something of a living weapon" he spat out each and every word. "The alliance would call it serving mankind; the scientists would call a possibility for new breakthroughs. I'd call it hell Shepard; I already killed everything in my way escaping one set of labs. What makes you think I'd let some Admiral drag me back to another?" his intentions were laid bare for Shepard to see. He would kill everyone on this ship if it meant his freedom.

Shepard sighed again, rubbing his hand into his forehead as he stepped back from the snarling super soldier. "I'm sorry Feral…..I….I never considered that." He shook his head slightly, it was the truth. Feral had spelt out the obvious and he couldn't believe he had missed it. If he had found the man's true identity. The admiralty board would've found out and demanded the super soldier be subjected to further testing. There's no way the Alliance would allow an ace in the hole like Feral to just walk away.

Feral just snorted, stepping back slightly and shaking his head "God I wish I couldn't tell that you're truth…because honestly I'd just love to kick the shit out of you right now" he growled disappointedly, "So what now Shepard? What are you going to do about these?" he held up the data pad.

Shepard just looked at it briefly "You can keep that copy and I'll ask the Captain to get rid of his"

"Good" Feral then just pushed the data pad between his two hands, crushing it slowly before crumpling it up like a piece of paper and letting it drop to the floor. "Now then….will that be all commander?" the final word dripped from his lips with venom. The situation had been handled for now, but Shepard knew it wasn't the end of it.

"Head to the comm room, we're going to have a briefing on the Feros situation in 10 minutes" Shepard just stepped out of the way for Feral to walk past him, the super human bumping into him with his shoulder as he barged past.

Feral stopped just before hitting the door panel, he turned over his shoulder and looked back at the commander "Shepard, if I find out this carries on. You can drop me off at the citadel. Until then, I'm still on board for the mission….just don't talk to me unless it's important"

"Feral one thing before you do go" Shepard piped up, he had to ask. "Was one of those names yours? I know you used to be alliance but none of those names were a sure thing. So I have to ask, was one of them yours?" it was an innocent question, he wasn't going to double cross Feral and he hoped the man could tell.

Feral just looked over his shoulder at the man, he saw that Shepard had no intent to go further with it. But he knew how powerful curiosity could be and how much it could eat at a person. He looked down briefly before hitting the door panel and walking out, a final word leaving his lips before the doors hissed shut and left Shepard alone in his quarters again.

"Yes"

- Normandy's Comm Room, 10 minutes later –

The team sat in silence as they waited for Shepard to start the briefing. The tension between Shepard and Feral was obvious and none of them knew why, but they could see Feral's eyes glaring daggers at the spectre.

Tali was worried about him, it had only been about 30 minutes since she had watched him walk out of the engine room with a smile on his face. She couldn't even begin to imagine what had happened and she couldn't take her eyes off her friend, seeing him so riled up scared her slightly. She had seen what he had done to the Cerberus base and he had seemed so calm afterwards. Just what had Shepard said to him?

Kaidan, Garrus and Ashley were just looking at each other, silently trying to figure out what could've happened between the two. They had been in the mess hall when they heard Feral shouting at him, but it was too muffled to actually hear any specific words. The face of the super soldier as he stormed away from Shepard's quarters had been chilling, his stance was aggressive and his face looked like thunder.

Liara was worried about Shepard on the other hand, she cared deeply about the man and he had told her as much about Feral as he could. She knew that Shepard considered him a friend and she was worried that he'd never be able to get his friend back.

Wrex really couldn't care less, he was just looking forward to kill something and Feros was the next big location for plenty of good Geth hunting.

Shepard finally started, all the eyes in the room that weren't already glaring at him turned towards him. The mission was relatively simple; they were going to land at the ExoGeni companies' small colony on Feros. Zhu's Hope. The Geth had attacked the colony and were bombarding the ExoGeni headquarters on the planet. Clearly Saren was interested in the colony and the council wanted him to find out why. Their mission was primarily dealing with the Geth attack, Shepard wanted to help the colony in any way they could. It would be their base of operations while they were there and they'd need to keep it up and running if they were going to be there for longer than a day.

"So that's it, any questions?" Shepard finally finished.

"Are we done here?" Feral limply raised a hand. Shepard just nodded at the man. "Good, I'll be getting my equipment ready" Feral stood up and just walked out of the room as fast as he could, the door hissing shut behind him.

There was a brief silence in the room before finally Kaidan spoke up. "Commander, all due respect, but what the hell is going on between you two?" everyone looked up at Shepard again, who sat back against the comm room terminal.

He sighed "you've all had suspicions about his origins. The last time we were on the citadel Anderson had found a list of 9 names and ranks that could've belonged to Feral. Feral found them in my office a while ago and…well…..some of you heard what he said to me when I came back."

Ashley burst out "Wait? He actually was Alliance?" the entire room was interested now; even Wrex had gotten curious at the revelation.

Shepard nodded gently "Before anyone says anything else, this whole situation has arisen because Feral feels betrayed. He's right to. I went behind his back and I dug into a past he wanted left alone. He'll know that I will have told you all this, but don't dig any further. If he is revealed as an Alliance soldier he will be reinstated and the Admiralty Board will want him to undergo further testing" and at the end of that sentence, both Kaidan and Tali voiced their concern.

"Keelah Shepard! You saw what he did in that Cerberus base! You know what he'd do if confronted with the idea of going back into a lab" she said loudly, worry ringing through her words.

"Commander she's right. We're his friends but if he had to choose between fighting his way through a platoon of Alliance soldiers and going into an Alliance lab. Sir, he'd kill everyone in a heartbeat" Kaidan was just as worried, he'd been there with Tali and Shepard when they'd found him. He still remembered the state of the men and women after he'd got his hands on a weapon. He was a friendly person, but if he was faced with his own personal hell again….Kaidan didn't even dare to think about it.

Shepard put his hands up to silence the two. "I know and It was something I had never considered. I was doing it purely to try and help him through. We all know he looks happy but I'm sure some of you have picked up on it, he's damaged and potentially unstable" No one could deny that. The outburst on Noveria, the broken rails in the engine room. Tali, especially, had seen how unstable he could be, he had attacked her that night and she still remembered the fury on his face.

"I know it was a bad call now and before you berate me more….he's my friend too" he let his head drop at that.

"Alright Shepard, we get your point." Garrus spoke softly from his seat "but what do we do about Feral? He looks like he's on a warpath"

"Don't worry about him; he's still on for the mission. Just keep an eye out on him, all of you. If you see any really reckless behaviour….try and talk him out of it" Shepard ended. He dismissed the rest of the team who went off to collect their gear. In the lower deck they could all see Feral sitting on top of the Mako, he was facing away from the all. Looking down at his lap as he held something in his hands.

Tali was about to go over to him when Garrus grabbed her arm. She was going to voice her reasons before the turian just shook his head. "Look at him Tali; he's already in enough pain. Let him try to work through this on his own. We can be there for him when he's ready" the Turian gently spoke; they may have butted heads on occasion. But Garrus greatly respected the man, he was strong but even Feral was starting to buckle; he needed time to gather his strength again.

The young quarian nodded back, looking back over at Feral as he sat on top of the tank. Finally she dragged her eyes away from him, sighing as she wondered what she could possibly do to help him. What any of them could do to help him.

- Zhu's Hope, Feros –

The Normandy had docked and the entire team had disembarked, it wasn't too long before the squad came under heavy Geth attack. The synthetic beings had wedged their way between the colony and the port and now Shepard and his team would have to punch a hole through the enemy lines to get to the colony. It turned out that Garrus had been right, Feral was on a warpath.

Liara and Kaidan were holding a barrier over the super soldier as he went on a rampage that even put Wrex to shame. With one hand he gripped onto his assault rifle, charging shoulder first into the Geth platforms faster than they had to react; a strong, super human fist destroying their processing units before they could counter attack. The barriers combined with his armour's shielding were proving difficult to penetrate at the lightning speed at which Feral was dispatching the platforms. The rest of the squad was more or less in a support role, cutting down stragglers or knocking out their shields so Feral could get his hands on them.

They watched in a mixture of awe and terror as he grabbed a hold of the last platform, knocking its weapon to the ground before he drove his fist into its chest. Gripping at the gaping hole with both hands and tearing the platform in half. The synthetic screeching of the Geth filling the stony stairway as white blood sprayed all over his chest plate, his hands coated in the white material from where he'd grabbed at its armour. Before any of them could say anything, he had grabbed his rifle and was walking up the stairs towards the colony.

Tali really couldn't complain at Feral wiping out a Geth patrol effectively by himself, but she was worried. He was starting to scare her; the ferocity of his attacks was starting to match those they had seen at the Cerberus facility where he'd been found. She'd seen his rage before, but he had used it to defend her. This fury was different, this time Feral wanted nothing more than to kill anything in his way.

The group made their way into Zhu's hope, where they were quickly directed toward Fai Dan. He began to explain the situation to the commander when suddenly Geth started to pour out of the tunnels leading to the skyway. Apparently Shepard was worried about Feral as well, instead of using the super soldier to his full potential he ordered him to stay back and man the entrance to the colony with Wrex. The two of them could handle anything the rest of the team missed. Feral hadn't even bothered to argue his case, he just growled before walking away.

Feral sat back on a crate in front of the doorway as he watched the team run off, he noticed Tali looking back at him briefly before she turned away and disappeared down the tunnel. He almost fell of his seat when Wrex slapped him on the back.

The Krogan laughed as he leant back against a wall "that was some show back there human. Finally putting those Krogan genes to good use I see" he laughed again as Feral just stared at him blankly, before staring off into the distance again.

"Word of advice though human, you put that much rage and anger into battle. Eventually it'll kill you. I should know, I grew up on a planet with more rage and anger than the rest of the universe combined" Wrex just stared off towards the sound of battle

"Skip the lesson Wrex, if you have a point to this just get it out already." Feral growled slightly, earning another laugh from Wrex.

"Straight to the point, another fine use of Krogan DNA" he snorted as Feral rolled his eyes "Don't stay mad for too long. Shepard didn't do what he did because he didn't trust you or because he wanted to shove you back in some lab. He just wanted to help you overcome your anger, overcome your past"

"I didn't ask for his damn help Wrex" Feral spat, burning a hole into the wall ahead with the fire in his eyes.

"Neither did I, and yet. While you were laughing and drinking with the turian and the other humans. He was helping me get my families armour back." This made Feral look at him slightly "Shepard doesn't do things for an ulterior motive, he's not plotting to stab you in the back like those slimy Salarians did to my people"

Feral just kept quiet, before finally Wrex sighed "Look this is all getting too squishy for me. The point is, Shepard didn't do it to piss you off. He did it to calm you down, and unless you get over it you will get yourself killed. You're not invincible human, even if that anger makes you feel like it" Wrex walked away, it was getting way too mushy for him.

Shepard had told them all to keep out of Feral's business for a while, but he was a Krogan. Anger, betrayal and a past that haunted his people made him associate with the human…plus there was the small fact they could both tear anything in their way a new one without even sweating. To a krogan, strength was as important as respect. The human was powerful, and Wrex respected him.

Feral sat back as Wrex left him to his own devices, he was thinking about what the Krogan had said and slightly at the fact that he had made a lot of sense. He didn't know what surprised him more, Wrex giving him advice or the fact he was right. He rested his head in his hands, maybe he'd eventually calm down. But it'd take more than the Krogan to calm him down in his current state, his anger at Shepard quickly returning as he remembered his name on the data pad. Flashes of sterile white labs passed through his head. Never again. Not for the Alliance, not for Cerberus. Not for anyone.

Before too long, the team started to return. The team split up after Fai Dan had asked them to look around the colony for the team to help with. Feral, Tali and Wrex were tasked with going down into the depths of the ruins. It turned out that most of the colonies problems were located down there and the three of them could handle that while the rest of the team boarded the Mako to cross the Skyway.

In truth, Shepard really wanted to have taken all three with him. But Feral was beginning to look like a problem; he couldn't have two of his biotics constantly trying to keep him alive. He hoped that running odd jobs around the colony would calm him down; hopefully Tali could help a little. But if anything did go wrong, he'd asked Wrex to use force to stop him if necessary.

Feral was starting to get even more pissed with the commander. Being held back to effectively do chores while the rest of the team went off to do the job at hand was getting him angry, he'd told Shepard that he was still on board and he was. Getting forced to stand back was getting him annoyed and it was showing. The small team had run into a relatively small amount of Geth in the tunnels and he was destroying them, running into fire as he tore into the machines.

Tali was desperately trying to knock out the shields of the platforms or rewire them as she watched her friend throw himself into the enemy. Feral was blinded by his rage and ignoring the rounds bouncing off his shields, luckily she and Wrex were taking out the rest of the platforms. Unlike her Wrex was having fun, he was enjoying the power at which they had charged through the enemy. Clearly forgetting his words of wisdom in the heat of battle.

Tali sighed when the fire fight in the tunnels came to an end; Feral hadn't noticed that rounds had put a hole in his side. The smouldering hole showing in the back of his shirt. She didn't have a chance to say anything before the two battle fuelled men headed off in the direction of the Geth transmitter. A krogan warlord and a few geth snipers stood in their way, she watched as the two quickly cut down the warlord. Feral had driven his combat knife straight into the reptiles head, cracking through the face plate with relative ease as he leapt onto the krogan. She'd briefly seen his eyes as they shut down the transmitter, the more and more of Feral she saw. The more scared she became, his eyes growing ever darker as his killing spree went rampant.

They were trudging back to the colony; Feral was carrying two power cells that they had found in a wrecked M29 grizzly. His fists and chest were splattered in both organic and synthetic blood. Wrex was leading the way as Feral carried the heavy cells. Tali dropped back slightly, she was looking over at him. His chest piece was dented from the amount of bullets that had hit him, she sighed at thinking how lucky he was to not have been hurt even more. Only a few of the rounds had pierced his armour or missed it completely and taken chunks out of his legs and sides.

She was rubbing her hands as she walked next to him, before she finally built up the courage to speak "Are you ok Feral?" she truly was worried about him.

"Do I look ok to you?" Feral just coldly replied, glancing over at her as he carried the cells on both of his shoulders.

Tali's face dropped even more behind her helmet as they walked along, she'd never heard him sound so dead before. "Shepard told us what he did to you Feral….are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" she jumped as the man suddenly snapped at her.

"Talk about what? Talk about how one of my friends betrayed my trust? How he accidentally could've gotten me thrown into an Alliance science facility instead of a Cerberus one?" he was growling at her, Tali was recoiling away from him "No I don't want to talk about it" he snarled as he turned to walk away

"Feral please…" Tali pleaded with him

"Please what?" he turned back around to face her, his fang like canines bearing slightly "There's nothing to talk about Tali. If you haven't noticed apparently I'm some sort of crazy super soldier. I've had everything taken away from me…my name is the last thing I have left that's still mine. I'm not going to let anyone take that too" he turned back around, walking off as he picked up the power cells again leaving Tali standing alone in the tunnels.

"Feral" she whined softly, a lone tear running down her cheek as the man who had once been her defender walked away. Eventually she recomposed herself and walked off back towards the colony.

The three had cleared the tunnels of varren, reopened the water valves, grabbed the power cells from the tank and shut down the transmitter. They had down everything Fai Dan had asked them to do, so they returned to the front of the Normandy. Waiting to hear word from Shepard and the rest of the team, Feral was working on his omni-tool as he sat on the stone wall. Tali was sitting on the floor against a crate, drawing images absent mindedly into the dirt as she thought about what had happened between her and Feral.

Wrex stepped out of the Normandy's airlock; he had quickly gone back into the ship to grab something to eat before coming back out. "Anything from Shepard yet?" he asked only to be responded by a shake of the head. "Bah! If he'd taken us with him they'd probably be done by now" he growled as he leant against a pillar and started eating whatever he'd grabbed.

"I wonder what those two want though" he gestured over to two of the Zhu's Hope guards who were walking over to them, their movements seemed stiff but Wrex just figured it was from fatigue. Most humans were pretty soft so it was pretty likely.

Feral looked up at them from his omni-tool and groaned "No idea, but I guess I'll go and find out" he jumped off the stone and walked over to the two guards. It was probably just about another chore they wanted the three of them to do.

Tali watched as Feral went off, staring at the man's back before looking back down at the ground. She could hear them talking, the two guards weren't making much sense and their words seemed a little jumbled. That made her look up again, tilting her head as she tried to make sense of the conversation. Feral clearly didn't have the patience and just rolled his head before turning his back on the two guards. Shrugging as he walked back towards Tali and Wrex.

Tali went wide eyed as she watched what happened next; the guard with the assault rifle suddenly pointed it at Feral's back. It was like time slowed down for her, she could hear everything so clearly. The man squeezing the trigger followed by the thuds of the bullets launching out of the rifle.

"FERAL!" she screamed, jumping to her feet and grabbing her weapon. Wrex throwing away his meal and reaching for his shotgun. She'd been too late though; the initial burst of assault rifle rounds had torn through Feral's shielding, the man crumbling over onto his chest as the rounds exploded out through his chest. It hadn't been enough to kill him, struggling at the ground as he lay there winded for a second. He tried to roll over and take aim at the two with his pistol before a second burst found its target. His head jolting back before he slumped back onto the ground, going limp as blood starting to soak the stone and dirt floor.

Tali and Wrex instantly starting firing in the general area with their shotguns, warps and overloads being thrown at the two guards as they ran back around the corner and towards the colony.

"Tali grab him!" Wrex shouted as they both ran forward, the krogan pushing ahead of the bloody body of Feral as Tali wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Dragging him as fast as she could back towards the Normandy's airlock. Wrex was keeping watch, stepping back in time as she dragged him. Leaving a trail of blood on the floor as she did. Eventually she reached the airlock of the Normandy, Wrex helping her pick Feral up as the moved into the ship. The last thing they saw was a group of colonists and guards rushing back towards the Normandy. Shots pinging off the sides of the dock as the airlock doors closed.

Wrex and Tali both panting as they waited for the airlock to run its cycle. "What the hell just happened?" Wrex finally asked, looking down at the quarian as she cradled Feral's head in her arms. She could see the wounds slowly healing up, it would take time. She knew that now, but this time she wasn't worried about whether he'd come back. Just if she could stop him from going back outside.

Black. The last things Feral had seen had been bullets tearing out of his chest as he fell forward onto the floor. Gasping for air as he watched Tali and Wrex scramble to their feet in the distance. The pain, Feral may regenerate wounds fast but he sure as hell still felt the pain. Pushing himself onto his back, reaching down for his pistol and then nothing.

Nothing until he finally gasped for air, struggling to stop himself from convulsing as the neurons suddenly started firing again. Looking around as he tried to figure out where he was. Blue walls, dim lights and he thought he saw a medi-gel dispenser on the wall. The med bay. As he convulsed and contorted around on the examining table he felt two small hands press down on his chest.

"It's ok" the voice was soft and had a small synthetic flare to it "We're safe now Feral" Tali watched as the man's muscles tensed as he moved around on the table. Chakwas was standing behind her, just watching the medical marvel.

"Amazing…..until now I'd assumed you'd all been hamming this whole thing up" she finally said "But true human regeneration, and to such an extent that even nerves grow back" the doctor was astonished, but quickly stopped when Tali looked back at her and shook her head slightly. She was right; Chakwas had let her medical mind get the better of her. Feral was in no condition to be treated like an experiment again.

Finally Feral just sighed loudly as he collapsed back onto the bed, one hand reaching up and clutching at his chest and the other holding his head. His breathing was ragged and rough; the after effects of a total body reboot the doctor silently thought. That's essentially what the convulsions were, after the brain switches back the impulses and electrical signals would be flying out. Trying to determine that everything was still there and doing what it should be doing.

Chakwas had kept that to herself though and finally said "If you need anything I'll be in the mess hall. Tali, I'll leave him to you" stepping out of the med bay, grabbing a sedative just in case.

Tali just watched the doctor walk out, sighing as she saw her grab the needle before she left. Turning back to Feral she still had a hand on his chest, she gently rubbed a small spot on just above his abs. There was a small trail of dried blood on his skin and she was touching the spot above it. Moments ago there had been a gaping hole in his body, and now it looked as good as new. Chakwas had cut his shirt off when Wrex had thrown the man onto the table; she wanted to make sure that he healed properly only to watch the skin slowly weave itself back together in quiet amazement.

Feral just groaned, his whole body was sore. His chest felt like someone had been doing the Cha-cha-cha on it and his head felt like someone had pushed a rail road spike into it. 'What the hell happened?' Feral thought to himself before it all came rushing back, the guards. Feral suddenly bolted up from the table and watched as Tali jumped back in shock. He quickly started stepping towards the doors before a voice and a hand stopped him.

"Feral wait! Where are you going?" Tali gripped him tightly by the arm, she knew compared to him that she was as strong as a baby but it didn't stop her.

"Payback" Feral just growled as he tore his arm out of her grip.

This time Tali rushed forward and grabbed his shoulder, trying to pull him back "Feral you can't!" she gasped and shrieked slightly as Feral spun around. Pushing his forearm against her collarbone and shoving her back into the wall, snarling as he glared straight at her. He was pinning her, and she could do nothing but struggle against his strength as she stared back into his eyes.

"F-Feral what's gotten into you?" she slowly whispered, her voice quaking slightly

"Nothing. This is just what I am Tali." He growled out as he stared into her eyes "A weapon"

She felt her heart break slightly at that sentiment, this whole time Feral had been trying to break free of Cerberus' experiments. Clutching onto anything he could from his life before. Now that his identity was at risk of being discovered, he was doing the only thing he could do.

Become the monster they had designed him to be, lose whatever was left of his past and take total control of his new identity; Feral.

"That's not true. They may have made you one but that's not who you are" Tali said softly, trying anything to break through the madness that was threatening to destroy her friend. "What happened to the man who defended me on the citadel?" she watched as Feral's snarl slowly started to drop.

"What happened to the man who trusted me enough to tell me everything?" she was trying to stay strong but her voice was betraying her, she was shaking. If she couldn't break through with this, the man Feral might never come back.

"What happened to the man who vowed never to let Cerberus create a monster?" she saw Feral's eyes starting to dart around, the silent panic she'd seen before as he fought against his very nature.

"What happened to my friend?" she raised a hand and placed it on his cheek, his eyes locking to hers when she did. Tali gently rubbed her fingers along the man's skin. "Please Feral. I don't care who you used to be…..but I care about who you are now."

That was it, her last sentence had hit home. Feral shut his eyes, she was right. What the hell had he been doing? He'd been angry, yes. He'd been furious that Shepard had gone behind his back, but was his name really worth all of this? Was it worth losing the only people in the universe who could still call him a friend? Was being alone really better?...

Tali watched the man in silence, her hand gently cupping his cheek as she waited for him to do something. She could feel the power in his arm fading, his hold on her slowly being relinquished. Then she saw him open his eyes slowly, and she silently screamed in delight. The anger, the silent stoic rage had been replaced by the kindness she'd come to know so well. Feral was back, HER Feral was back.

"Tali I'm so sorry" he managed to utter out, before he broke down completely. The weight of everything he had said and done came crashing down on the fragile man's psyche. Putting his hand on top of hers he buried one side of his face into her palm as he clenched his eyes shut again. He fell forwards into her, pinning the woman back into the wall as he silently cried against her.

Tali just smiled gently as she watched him break down, holding his body to hers as his shoulders shook slightly. Feral had done so much for her in his short time on the Normandy. He'd defended her in public, confided in her after his nightmare, he'd saved her life when the Geth hunter had ambushed them and he'd helped her complete her pilgrimage. Now it was her turn to do something for him. She'd pulled back the Feral who made everyone around him feel happy with that infectious smile and laugh.

Tali just sighed happily as she held her friend, the man clinging gently at her environmental suit and her hand as he leaned into her. Tears running down his cheeks as he realised how he'd acted. How he had nearly destroyed the friends he had made. How he'd almost become the monster he feared he was. All over a name, an identity he thought was long gone. It had taken a young, scared quarian to show him that even though he went by the name Feral, Alex was still very much alive.

- SSV Normandy, 8 hours later –

Feral was sitting on his cot in the engine room, staring down at the dog tags he held in his hands. He was thinking about everything that had happened. Everything he had said and done over the past 2 days. What Tali had said to him. 'Thank god for Tali' he thought to himself. She really was the best friend he'd ever made, even after he had shouted at her and thrown her into a wall. She was only interested in helping him; she didn't care what he was called. He sighed as he rubbed the name printed on the metal as he sat alone in the engine room.

He had been present for the debriefing; Shepard still wanted him to hear what had occurred. The Thorian, if Feral himself wasn't difficult enough to believe a giant plant that had mind control abilities was even weirder. It explained what had happened, why the colonists had turned on them. ExoGeni had been conducting experiments using the colonists. Feral had been glad he hadn't be present on the mission, in the state of mind he'd been in. Discovering yet more humans experimenting on humans may have caused him to do something he'd have really regretted.

Shepard had killed the Thorian and saved the colony though, the commander came through yet again. He even spared the once indoctrinated asari Shiala. Once again Shepard was forgiving, saving lives and setting them free.

Feral knew Shepard had been telling the truth when he said that he had never considered what the Alliance would do if they found out Feral was an Alliance marine. But this was the first time he'd actually considered the possibility that Shepard would never have let them take him. That the spectre would've done anything in his power to prevent him going back to into his personal hell.

The Normandy was currently dimmed so the crew could rest up, Feral sighed to himself. In the morning he would go and speak to Shepard. He needed to make amends with him, and a good night's rest would help him gather his thoughts. Feral breathed deeply, squeezing the metal in his hands before looking up as he saw Tali walking into the engine room with her cot.

He smiled up at the quarian as she unfolded her bed, the woman turning around after she had finished it and before she could sit down she tilted her head "What are you holding?" she asked curiously.

Feral looked down and then back up, he completely forgotten he still had his tags in his hands. He rubbed his teeth along his bottom lip as he thought quickly to himself, coming to a quick conclusion. He had promised to come to her….and his identity was still weighing down on his mind. "My dog tags" he finally said, holding up the metal for her to see

She slowly shifted "I thought we were over your identity crisis Feral" Tali was worried but she was relieved to see the man smile, it wasn't the big grin he usually had on his face but it was still a smile

"Yh…..well….I was just thinking about what you said earlier today" he glanced down at the name again, rubbing his finger over it slowly

Tali slowly moved across the room before sitting down next to the man, she was looking at him. Not the tags, she didn't care what his name was and she wasn't trying to secretly find out. "..and?"

"You were right Tali." He sighed gently, looking back at her and smiling a little more "Just because I may not go by this name anymore….it doesn't mean he's gone. I'm still me….and maybe one day I'll even go by this name again. Thank you for making me remember who I am" he smiled again, looking straight into her eyes.

Tali smiled back, it wasn't his cheeky grin this time. It was his bright, infectious smile. She wiggled slightly on the cot before purring out "Well…I'm just glad you listened to me Feral. My next plan of action involved my shotgun"

Feral laughed at that "Yh well that is good then. Geth and mind controlled guards? Easy. You and your shotgun?...fuck that" the pair laughed together at that, Tali was beaming within her helmet. She was glad to hear his laugh again after so long.

"So…..you're not even slightly curious?" Feral raised his eyebrow at her

"Pardon?" the question had thrown her off a little

"I'm holding my dog tags Tali, just one glance and you could see what my name really is" he smiled gently at her, the metal still in his hands.

Tali paused, glancing down slightly at the tags but unable to make out anything. "Well…..I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little curious but" she reached over and closed his hands around the tags "but all I care about is who you are. Your name doesn't matter to me…..plus I think Feral suits you" she giggled out that last bit

Feral just looked at the young woman, his red eyes piercing through the dim blue light of the room. A small smile slowly appeared on his lips "Would you like to know anyway?"

"Feral….you don't need to tell me. Really, it's ok." Tali pleaded with him "You wanted it kept a secret so keep it a secret" squeezing her hands around his tightly, keeping the metal hidden in their fingers.

"Tali, you saw what happened when I kept this to myself. I nearly got myself killed, permanently. I was reckless and ferocious." He sighed loudly, looking down at their tangled hands "More importantly I nearly pushed my best friend away from me. You asked me to come to you if I ever needed to get something off my chest." Tali was about to speak but Feral cut her off

"I know, this is much bigger than what you meant. But I trust you Tali, I know you went tell anyone and….I need to get this off my chest. I need to tell someone before this tears me apart again" he looked straight back up at her, pleading with his eyes

Tali sighed; she could see the pain in his eyes. He was right; he'd done so much trying to keep this secret. Maybe sharing it would ease the burden he was carrying. Then Tali smiled, he was asking her to help take that load. He trusted her enough to reveal his deepest secret to. She blushed at the deep significance that held and finally said "Ok then, Feral. Before you do though, just know that no matter what your name is. You'll always be Feral to me ok?"

The man smiled and snorted slightly before taking a deep breath, opening his hands and forcing Tali's hands open as well. He was showing her his dog tags and she took time to look at every single word on them before Feral spoke up.

"Hello Tali'Zorah nar Rayya, I'm Alex"


	10. Forgiveness, Pyjaks, a Story and a Drink

Tali was sitting in the mess hall the next morning, she still couldn't believe what had happened the night before. She'd barely been able to sleep because of what Feral had told her. He had trusted her with his real name, they hadn't talked much after that but Feral had given her his dog tags. He told her that he'd rather she kept them; he was tired of looking at them constantly. The quarian had them stowed away in one of the very many pockets on her suit.

Operations Chief Alex Lloyd, the dog tags had his name, rank and date of birth on them. Amongst a few other details like blood type, although Feral had said he doubted he was still A- after all the testing. After he had told he his name, he talked a little bit about his past. He mainly just gave little details about what he remembered of his family, his home. She'd then asked how Cerberus had caught him.

The story was shocking, the special ops team. The ambush and watching most of his close friends die. Then the revelation came, Feral blamed himself for what had happened. He had told her how he was playing games on his omni-tool, but the moment he started scanning for signals he found the obvious jamming wavelength. If he had been doing his job, if they all hadn't been so relaxed. He may have found it faster and they could all have been alive.

_Feral sighed as he finally uttered those words "It was my fault Tali…..if I had done my damn job none of them would be dead, and I wouldn't be so messed up" they were still sitting on his cot_

_Tali put a hand on the super human's shoulder "Feral I'm sorry about what happened, but it's not your fault" Feral just kept his head down, looking at the ground "No one knew what was coming, not even your Captain suspected anything"_

"_but.."Feral went to speak but was cut off_

"_But nothing, you were young. You said so yourself, your promotion was a formality to get you into class rooms. It wasn't your fault, and no one could ever blame you for what happened" she whispered to him, sighing gently "and I know it's selfish but…..in a way I'm glad it happened" _

_Feral bolted up to glare at her "….what?" he had a confused look on his face_

"_It's just that" she was rubbing her hands together gently "if none of that had happened we might never have even met…." She trailed off, fidgeting slightly in her seat. _

_Feral's glare turned into a slightly shocked look before he chuckled and turned away from her, Tali looked up at him again and in the dim blue light. She swore she could see a small red tint on his cheeks. "…I guess every cloud has a silver lining huh?" he finally smiled as he looked back at her "guess I'm lucky that my silver lining does more than just look pretty" he laughed as he made a gun with his fingers and made a shooting noise. _

_Tali eyes went wide at that. 'Wait….look pretty?' she barely had time to say anything before Feral looked at his omni-tool. _

"_It's getting late Tali; we have to be awake and working again in about 5 hours. We should get some rest" Feral smiled kindly at the quarian who was still struggling to find her words. "Goodnight, my shotgun toting silver lining" the man then leant forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, squeezing her tightly in his arms. "Thank you for everything" _

_Tali just sat there before she hugged him back "you're welcome Feral, I'm just glad I could help" she sighed happily as the warm arms of Feral wrapped around her, managing to suppress a whine as they slowly pulled away. Reluctantly she stood up and started walking backwards to her cot. "Goodnight Alex" she purred out his real name, her intention had been to sound teasing but it came out more seductive than playful. _

Tali was recalling the events last night over and over in head, blushing as she remembered what Feral had called her. 'HIS pretty silver lining' she smiled and bit her lip slightly at that as she just stared at her food. Eventually jumping as she heard her name being shouted.

"TALI!" Ashley was waving her hand in front of her visor, before pulling it back when the Quarian finally moved "are you ok in there?...you seem kind of spaced out" Ashley was leaning across the table and looking slightly worried.

"What?...oh….I'm sorry Ash" Tali just shook her head slightly "I was just thinking about something in the engine room that's all" she half-lied to the gunnery chief

"Yh well you and the engine can catch up later Tali, I was trying to find out if Feral said anything to you last night" Ash leaned back into her chair, the prospect of the angry super soldier still storming around the ship worried her more than the non-human crew members had at the start of the mission.

Tali just shook her head, she had never liked her suit this much but at least now it was hiding the colour of her cheeks. The blush on her face was burning her cheeks and she eventually managed to squeak out "N-no, by the time I went down there he was asleep" that time she lied completely, hoping her voice wouldn't give her away.

Ash just sat back and sighed "I know that it was wrong of the commander to go behind his back and all but isn't he going a little far? I mean I have no love for the Geth but jeez….he was tearing them apart". The entire table, save Tali, was worried about Feral.

"I dunno Ashley, I managed to get him into an elevator a few times and started firing questions his way. He usually laughs them off but anything about his name or before Cerberus?" Garrus spoke up finally "This really was the only outcome of Shepard snooping around…let's just hope Feral gets his head around this before anything really bad happens." He carried on eating his breakfast; it was some of the food Feral was directly responsible for getting. Something Garrus was very grateful for, he sighed as he took another bite. He really hoped someone didn't end up dead.

"Here comes the devil" Liara said, causing Kaidan, Garrus and Ashley to turn around. Feral was walking off towards Shepard's office, his face was completely unreadable but his eyes briefly flicked over to the table. Nodding once at the group before he headed off around the corner.

"Liara, the phrase is 'Speak of the devil'" Kaidan corrected the young asari, "But in this case….you may be right" he sighed as they all turned back to their food; he thought he saw something but he quickly dismissed it. 'There's no way Tali is smiling right now'

Feral smirked as he stepped out of view of the rest of his team, trying desperately to suppress a laugh as he grinned. He'd told Tali his plan to talk to Shepard in the morning; he wanted to get the word to the commander before anyone else so he had asked her to play along just for now. He stood outside Shepard's door and took a few deep breaths, it was going to be a serious conversation and turning up at his quarters grinning like a mad man might make Shepard reach for his weapon. He really doubted it but still, this was important. He could mess with everyone else's heads later.

Finally he reached up and knocked at the door, only for a muffled "come in" from the other side. He hit the panel and stepped in, letting the door shut behind him quickly. Shepard looked up and sighed as he saw the man step in.

"We need to talk commander" it had been 2 days now since Feral had stormed out of Shepard's office. Since the last time they had properly talked together and he could see that Shepard had obviously been thinking about it.

Shepard nodded and gestured towards the small sofa opposite his desk; Feral just walked over and sat down on it. Sitting back and crossing one of his legs over the other as he looked over at the commander who was gathering his thoughts.

"Shepard listen..." Feral started but he was cut off before he could even begin.

"I'm sorry Feral. I shouldn't have betrayed you like that." Shepard let his head hang down as he sat forward; weaving his fingers together "I knew you were going to react badly no matter what I did with that information. All I can tell you is that I honestly intended to try and use it to help you, I realise now I should've just let you open up at your own pace" he sat back in his chair and sighed "I can only apologize to you Feral, but if there's anything else I can do to make it up to you" he shrugged and just waited for the response

To his surprise he saw Feral smile "Apology accepted Shepard, I mean you're still an ass for doing it but…..I get it, again you're an ass for doing it but I understand why you did it now"

Shepard just looked at the man with a look of shock.

"Hey don't get me wrong I was planning on shouting at you a little bit more but….then you go and apologize and admit your mistakes before I could" Feral waved his hands in the air before he starting laughing a little. "You spoiled my fun Shepard but at least you said sorry"

Shepard just shook his head and cracked a small smile, "Ok I have to ask, yesterday you were about ready to rip my head off but now…..what happened?"

Feral smiled gently at that "A friend reminded me who I am. What, past or literal, doesn't really matter."

Shepard didn't have to think for a second before he asked his next question "Tali?"

Feral just snorted "Now how did you know that commander? I thought I warned you about spying on me already" he leant forward and glared playfully at Shepard

Shepard laughed at that before answering truthfully "Why do you think I left her and Wrex behind with you? They were both invaluable to the mission but I left them with you. Admittedly Wrex was there because he's the only thing on board that could stop you if you went on a rampage. Tali though, I left her behind because you two have been through a lot together. You've done a lot for her Feral and you've left an impression on her, if anyone could break through to you it was going to be her."

Feral just listened to his statement and shrugged at the end of it "You take pride in being observant don't you?" raising an eyebrow at him

"Well what can I saw Feral, not all of us can smell a lie" Shepard quipped back, making a laugh emanate from the super human. "So Feral…..are we good?"

Feral just breathed deeply before smiling back at his XO, offering his hand to his friend "Don't pull a stunt like that again and yh. Yh we're good Shepard"

Shepard smiled as he reached over and shook Feral's hand, noticing that Feral squeezed slightly harder than he should have but it was just to make a point. "Will that be all commander?" Feral stood up slowly from the sofa.

"Nothing personal. But could you grab Kaidan and Tali? We've been asked to recover a Geth data module from the planet Eletania. Just head straight to the Mako, I'll brief more before we drop" Shepard asked.

Feral gave a lazy two fingered salute to the spectre "No problem, talk to you later Shepard" Feral went to walk out before turning back briefly "Hey Shepard, just for the record. I'm sorry about the way I acted towards you."

Shepard just smiled back at his friend "Forget it Feral, the fact that this has been resolved without you killing anyone is good enough for me"

Feral just laughed as he walked out of Shepard's quarters, leaving the commander all alone. He waited for the door to shut and let out a loud sigh, sinking in his seat "Thank god for Tali" he laughed to himself as he thought about all the other scenarios he'd envisioned this playing out.

Feral was walking back out into the mess hall, he was about to shout out for Kaidan and Tali but he overheard Garrus talking.

"He's been in there for a while….do you think one of us should go and make sure Shepard is still alive?"

Feral could see that they hadn't moved much, but Liara had disappeared back to her office. Leaving Tali the only person facing towards him. He slowly started to walk up behind the turian, placing his feet down gently so he didn't make a single noise. Raising a single finger to his mouth when he noticed Tali had spotted him; she got the message and kept quiet.

Ashley was laughing at Garrus comment "Oh come on Garrus, you really think Feral would be that quiet? We'd have heard Shepard screaming by now"

Feral had successfully crept all the way behind the three; he was reaching for Ashley's knife which lay between her and Garrus. Suddenly and without warning he jolted forward, wrapping one arm around Ashley's collar and picking up the knife with the other. Waving the metal cutlery around in front of her face.

"Oh I dunno Ash" he growled quietly into her ear. "I can be incredibly quiet when I want to be" Garrus and Kaidan had both jumped away at the sudden commotion, Ashley was just sitting bolt upright as her eyes bulged in silent terror. "All it would take is for Shepard to turn away from me. Just one moment…..and….." He snapped his fingers "well….you're a marine, take a wild guess" he grinned evilly, the knife reflecting his smile back towards Ashley.

Feral then just dropped the knife to the table and stood back up. "Tali and Kaidan, we got to go to the Mako. Shepard needs us to collect some lost data module" he gestured over to the elevator, shrugging his shoulders slightly.

Kaidan just nodded, not sure what to make of what had just happened. He figured instead of arguing it'd be better for him to just make a move as fast as he could, so he got up and made his way to the elevator.

Tali was biting her lips yet again, trying not to explode laughing at Feral's actions. So she just nodded as well, snorting slightly as a laugh escaped her lips. Feral and Tali just walked off towards the elevator, laughing loudly. As the elevator started moving downwards, the loud groan of Feral filled the silent mess hall before a repeated thumping noise started.

Garrus started snickering to himself as he starting eating again, Feral was back to his old self. Hearing Tali laugh was proof of that and the sound of Feral beating his head into the elevator was further evidence to the ex C-Sec officer. He slowly sighed as he finally spoke up "…..Just when I thought Feral couldn't get any scarier….." Garrus looked over to Ashley, tilting his head slightly "…are you ok?"

He received his answer in the form of a small whimper, to which he couldn't help himself and he started laughing even louder.

Kaidan and Feral were at their lockers, putting their armour on. Tali was waiting by the Mako as she watched the two men strap their armour plates in position, all she had to do was grab her pistol and shotgun. She was humming to herself as she smiled, poor Ashley. She had been the victim of Feral's latest prank, but at least he was back to normal.

"You're terrible you know that right?" Kaidan looked over at Feral, who just laughed in response

"Yh I know" he was strapping his body plate into position before fitting the plating onto his shoulders and arms. "But at least I'm just playing around again." He smiled playfully

Kaidan just sighed, before smiling back "Yh well…..Ashley's going to be pissed"

Feral chuckled again "ahh she'll get over it eventually" he grunted as he tightened the straps to his upper body plating, checking it was all securely fastened.

"Oh I wouldn't be so sure" Kaidan was busy fitting the armour onto his legs now "First off duty time we had, we were stuck on the Normandy. I had a few classic horror movies on holo-deck and we managed to convince her to watch one of them"

"What movie?" Feral looked over, he and Kaidan shared an interest in 21st century and prior human culture and they talked about it pretty often. Fighting over classic movies at the mess hall table, enjoying the fact that no one had any idea what they were talking about.

"Alien" he simply replied, cut off by Feral before he had a chance to continue his story.

"Ooooo now that is a classic….and you made her watch it on a space ship? Kaidan….I didn't know you had it in you" Feral just laughed again

Kaidan shook his head slightly as he smiled "Yh well she didn't talk to me for a week AND slept with her shotgun in the sleeper pod." Again this just made Feral laugh, and the two men just went back to putting their armour on.

"You don't have to answer but" Kaidan slowly said, choosing his words carefully "What did Shepard say to you? I mean you were pissed yesterday and then….you spent about 15 minutes in his quarters and you're back to your old self"

Feral just smiled cheekily "What? I can't be in a good mood Kaidan?" Feral sighed as he just watched the biotic stare at him "Fine…he said sorry to me and I believed it was genuine. I had a good night last night and a lot of time to think about what happened and…..I realised Shepard wasn't being malicious, he was just being an ass." Feral shrugged "Then he apologised to me the moment I walked into his quarters" he pushed the last piece of his armour into place and strapped it down, reaching into his locker and grabbing his pistol and rifle.

"Despite everything, I'm pretty reasonable Kaidan" he smiled as he patted the biotic on the shoulder, before he headed towards the Mako. Kaidan just watched as Feral walked off, his explanation actually made sense. He wasn't going to bring it up more because no matter what really had happened. Feral was back to his old self, even if Ashley was eventually going to tear him a new one.

Before he turned back to finish putting his armour on, he saw how Tali and Feral were interacting. The quarian was bouncing on the front of her feet almost constantly and Feral never stopped smiling. Then he remembered Feral's words and laughed quietly, he was right. Tali had been smiling when she first saw him this morning. The biotic just smiled as finished gathering his equipment, he was happy to see that the two were such good friends; though he had to wonder if friends was a strong enough word for the two anymore.

- Planet Eletania –

Feral grabbed the pyjak and tore the data module from its hands, growling loudly as the scared 'space monkey' darted off into the depths of the mine. They finally had it, this mission hadn't been tough but damn it had been annoying. Chasing around pyjaks had been about as much fun as being shot in the head for Feral and he was pretty sure that everyone else was considering finding out what it felt like for themselves.

"If I ever see a pyjak….ever again. I swear to god I'm going to kill something" Feral growled as he put the data module into one of his protective pouches. Tali muttered something about her shotgun as they started to walk out of the mines.

All of them were done with this planet and they wanted off as soon as they could. After this they'd be heading to the citadel for a quick stop, and at least for Feral, Tali and Kaidan that meant a stop in Flux to get a few drinks. Feral knew that he wouldn't get drunk, but drinking with friends would lower his urge to punch holes into walls. Shepard just asked them to wait for him, he'd have to drop off the data module to Anderson but then he'd gladly join them.

All four of them shared a laugh as they stepped out of the mine, staring up as a large ship floated off in the distance. A Geth drop ship.

"Ah crap! QUICK! Get to the mako!" All four of them quickly ran forward to the tank, which had been parked perpendicular to the ramp leading down from the mines entrance. Rounds and rockets starting flying just as they made it, taking cover behind its large wheels.

Shepard was barking out orders. "Kaidan get some biotics down on those forward platforms. Tali do what you can to slow them down. Feral get in the mako and get on that turret" All three of them nodded and immediately got started.

Feral smashed his first against the side hatch of the mako before he scrambled inside, dropping his rifle down on one of the seats as he climbed up into the gunnery position. Quickly flicking on the switches and powering up the turrets weaponry. He then took hold of the controls and opened fire. Feral normally found firing the Mako's weapons a lot of fun, but after his experiences with the pyjaks. He was downright loving this, zooming in and taking a sadistic amount of pleasure in watching the machine gun tearing the Geth to pieces. Laughing to himself as he watched them explode when he launched the occasional missile at them.

Eventually the small attack was repelled, the Mako definitely made short work of the platforms and both Tali and Kaidan's supporting abilities had made it even more futile. Eventually the rest of the team crawled up into the Mako. Feral was sitting in the gunner's seat still as Tali and Kaidan sat down and locked themselves in.

Tali looked up "Have fun?" she looked up happily at the smiling man

"Oh….you have no idea" he smiled back cheekily "I'll take Geth over pyjaks any day" The crew of the Mako all laughed at that, they couldn't agree more and finally there were getting off the infested planet.

"What's the bet that Joker asks for another medal? The Normandy probably isn't equipped to land on a planet covered in monkeys" Kaidan said as they watched the ship land, everyone but Feral laughed. He'd have to ask Tali about that later, but he smiled in his seat as listened to them laugh.

- Flux, 2 hours later-

The 'space monkey' squad, as Joker had affectionately entitled them when they had boarded the Normandy, were sitting the bar. Shepard had quickly dropped off the data module with Anderson, but Feral had stayed behind with Tali and sat in front of the reception, briefly explaining the situation to the Captain. He was sorry to hear how badly it had gone but he was even happier to learn that Feral was back on board with the mission; his past could wait for another time.

They had been joined by Garrus who was keen to get off the Normandy and hearing Feral complain about pyjaks and elevators was always enough to keep the turian equivalent of a smile on his face. Although this time, he wasn't going to drink too much. He'd learnt his lesson the last time he'd drank with Feral, he wasn't going to win in that situation.

"So seeing as you've calmed down now" Garrus said across the table towards Feral, who was taking a sip of his drink "Any chance we can push you for any stories?" he tilted his head towards the man, as everyone around the table encouraged Feral to at least divulge something.

"For the last time Garrus, I'm telling you if I can catch a missile with my head" Feral just laughed into his glass, finishing it off as he watched the group start to plead. Even Tali was asking him for just one story, letting his head sag for a moment before he leant back and raised his hands "Ok ok, one. One story" he held up one finger much to the group's delight, a small cheer coming from them.

Feral rubbed his tongue along his top teeth before finally saying "How about why I hate elevators?"

Kaidan leant forward with a smirk on his face "Wait that actually has a story behind it? I thought you were just an impatient bastard"

Feral groaned slightly as he realised he'd probably made a mistake, it was the only story he was really willing to tell but even so. He sighed "Yh, it's from when I was a kid"

This time Tali piped up "Oh then we have to hear this, somehow I can't imagine you as a child" she stuck her tongue out for Feral; she knew he couldn't actually see but the tone in her voice let him know.

Feral stuck his tongue back out at the woman, he knew what she'd done behind her visor "Yh believe it or not. Crazy old me actually used to be little and annoying….well….less annoying I'm sure" he smirked as he saw the group was looking forward to finding out the truth about his hate of the machines.

"Ok so when I was about 6 years old I lived in London, one of those whacking great big apartment complexes in the outskirts of the city" Feral started his story "and much like any annoying, 'bundle of joy' I liked playing in the elevators. It was good fun, they were fast and you got a great view of the city."

He carried on telling his story, the group intently listening in as they tried to imagine Feral 19 years beforehand. He told them about the time he was messing around in the elevators and his mother had found out from the building's security that he was tearing around the entire building effectively using the elevator as a taxi. His mother had told him that if she ever caught him doing it 'She'd hit his head against the sides of the elevator'.

A few days after she had told him that, like any other child, he did exactly what he was told not to. He went to play in the elevator again and this time, the elevator came whirring to a halt. He'd been terrified, hitting at the emergency button and calling for help. He was stuck in that elevator for 3 hours, before he finally remembered what his mother had said to him.

"So I stood up, walked over to the panel and said 'Sorry mum' and I thumped my head straight into it. Not enough to hurt just enough to make a noise and immediately. The elevator started moving again." Feral was watching the faces of the people around the table, who were silently laughing at his silly childhood tale. "Ever since that day I started to believe that the elevator would stop if I didn't hit my head on the wall, so I did" he smiled as Kaidan and Shepard snickered at the story.

"And as you can see it's a habit that kind of stuck with me over the years. THE WORST THING! The worst thing about that story." Feral recomposed himself "6 years ago, my mum came up to me on my 19th birthday and she said to me. 'Son….I'm worried about your elevator problem. You're going to destroy all those smart brain cells of yours if you ever get stuck in one again' and then she told me the truth about that day when I was 6" the group edged forward again, holding themselves together as he finally ended his tale.

"Turns out, she had told security that if I was ever seen messing around in the elevator again. They were to stop the elevators and ignore my cries for help until….until I hit my head on the wall" Feral sat back and shrugged. Initially looking annoyed as Shepard and Kaidan laughed but eventually joining in. Garrus was snickering from behind his drink but Tali was both shocked and amused.

"Keelah! I can't believe your mother would do that" she finally laughed out.

"Hey it worked, I fucking hate the things now!" Feral laughed and smiled at the Quarian who eventually started laughing as well, he turned around as a waitress came over and handed him a drink.

"Complements from an anonymous admirer" the waitress said before she smiled and walked off.

Feral just stared at the drink "…what?" Kaidan and Shepard laughed again at the man's reaction to the anonymous gift.

"What? You've never had an admirer before Feral?" Garrus asked, teasing the confused human

"Hey I'm a software technician, I spent most of my time with my head down in an omni-tool" Feral defended himself "Plus those 4 years with Cerberus didn't really present much opportunities for mingling" he rolled his eyes at the word

"So you've never 'mingled'?" Kaidan looked at him with a raised eyebrow, both Shepard and Garrus leaning in as Feral got more and more flustered. Tali was pretending to ignore the boy talk but she couldn't help being curious.

Feral stumbled over his words slightly as he rubbed the back of his neck, the super human was more or less immune to bullet wounds but the topic of….'mingling' had always bothered him a little. He should have been used to the teasing by now but 4 years away from marines had left his defences down. Eventually he just sighed "no I haven't" he sat back in his chair and just let the men look at him with smirks.

He lifted his arm and let his omni-tool flare up "Again, I'm a hacker. I'm into software and computer systems and that doesn't usually attract the ladies." Once again he was rolling his eyes before Shepard finally spoke up

"Well maybe it's the eyes Feral, for humanity their pretty exotic and even you have to admit they attract attention" he snorted as Kaidan and Garrus joined in laughing. Tali had to admit that Shepard was right, she'd never vocalise it but Feral's deep red eyes were very striking. His emotions were almost amplified by the red pupils and she personally thought it was one of Feral's most attractive features.

"Whatever Feral, just drink the damn drink and maybe she'll come over and introduce herself" Garrus finally added. That statement made Tali feel…..jealous. Did she really have the right? She liked Feral but they were only friends, she sighed as she started to feel selfish. It was practically a mortal sin on the migrant fleet.

Feral groaned and finally sat forward "Fine, if it'll shut you all up" he grabbed the glass and downed the entire drink in one, slamming the glass down onto the table. "There" he sat back again as the boys just laughed again, making Feral smile. The drink had tasted good and he wondered what it was….it tasted familiar to him.

Shepard was taking a sip of his glass before he looked up at Feral; his face was contorted into a weird look. "Feral….are you ok?"

Feral looked up at the commander, holding his hand up into the air as his fingers starting shaking

"I think I've been poisoned" he said before his eyes rolled back into his head. Followed by his head slamming down into the table as he started to convulse. The group jumped up and Kaidan grabbed Feral's shoulders and pulled him back into his seat, trying to hold him still as he shook.

Garrus had shouted at the bouncer to call for a medic while Shepard moved to try and help Kaidan hold Feral down. Tali just watched in horror at the scene, it'd only been moments ago that he'd been laughing and now she didn't know what to do. Her hands just came up to her face as she watched, praying that Feral would be ok. He'd never told her how he handled poison and she didn't know what to expect.

Eventually his convulsion stopped and he went limp in the men's arms, Shepard roared at someone to call for a medic. The nightclub had frozen at the situation that was unfolding. Before finally a voice broke through the silence.

"Out of my way! I'm a doctor!" a man rushed forward and stepped over to the commander. "I can help your friend" he said and Shepard just nodded as the man took Kaidan's place. Tali was watching, she was hoping that this man could help Feral. He wasn't moving and she was sure he wasn't breathing either.

The doctor examined him quickly, checking his vitals before shaking his head and reaching into his pocket "I need to give him a shot of adrenaline, he's not responding" he pulled out a small needle and pushed Feral's head to one side. He was about to push it into Feral's neck when suddenly Shepard's hand grabbed his wrist, stopping him.

"What kind of doctor carries around adrenaline in his pocket?" he stared at the man, glaring into his eyes.

"A prepared one, now please you have to let me do this or there is a real chance your friend will die." The doctor demanded, yanking his hand out of Shepard's grip pulling back his hand and going to stab the needle into Feral's neck. Another hand stopped him, but this time the hand went around his neck and had a red pair of eyes at the end of it.

Feral squeezed the man's throat hard, the sudden pressure making him drop the needle. He then pushed the man back, watching as he fell back into the middle of the room.

"Feral what are you doing? He was trying to help you!" Tali screamed at him, she was scared. Feral was still shaking and twitching slightly.

"TALI IT'S HIM! HE REEKS OF THE STUFF!" Feral managed to snarl out as he twisted in pain on his chair. Everyone turned around to stare at the doctor, who was looking panicked.

"I…I don't know what he's talking about! It's standard practice for doctors to carry adrenaline in cases of emergency" he was grasping at straws, pushing himself away as Shepard and Garrus started walking towards him.

Feral was being held down by Kaidan until suddenly he slammed his fists down on the table, a loud crack resonating through the room as he finally regained control of his body. Feral was panting loudly, moaning as he pushed himself to his feet. Everybody in the club just watched as the super soldier began to walk off the poison, every step he took became more and more confident. Until finally Feral had full control of his body again, he was in pain still, but he was able to confront the doctor.

Tali watched as Feral stepped up to the man, his eyes full of thunder as he spoke out. "So…..how much are they paying you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about! I WAS TRYING TO HELP YOU!" the man shouted before recoiling back again.

This time Feral roared "CERBERUS! HOW MUCH IS CERBERUS PAYING YOU?" snapping out his words as he snarled angrily at the terrified man. If the club had sounded quiet before, listening to the human roar had stunned the entire room into utter silence.

Shaking in fear the doctor managed to utter out "I have no idea what you're talking about"

Feral just glanced over at Shepard and nodded once.

"Clearly not enough" the commander said "They didn't tell you that Feral could smell a lie did they?" glaring down at the doctor.

The doctor just looked around the room, before realising no one was going to help him. He suddenly stopped shaking "No, obviously not" he stared back up at Feral, who's fangs were baring at the Cerberus agent.

Tali was suddenly furious, at the revelation Feral had just uncovered she wanted nothing more than to watch Feral tear him apart. No one hurts her friends. The 5 squad members slowly converged on the agent, who was lying back on the floor were Feral had thrown him.

"So what did they tell you?" Feral growled

The agent just looked at him "They told me that subject-0515 was extremely dangerous. That direct confrontation was unlikely to work, and poisons would only stop you for a brief amount of time."

"So what was in that needle?" Garrus was growling as well, the agent had tried to kill a friend of his and he wasn't going to get away with it.

"A sedative, a powerful enough one to deal with the subject" the man coldly replied

"HE HAS A NAME YOU BOSH'TET!" Tali shouted at the agent, she was glaring at him through her visor. 'KEELAH! I wish I had my shotgun right now' she mentally screamed.

"Not to Cerberus he doesn't, he's just another of their failed experiments and 'he' wants him back" the man yelped as he suddenly felt himself being dragged into the air.

Feral had grabbed the man's shirt and was holding him off the floor "Who is 'He'?" he was snarling, the identity of his tormentor was at his fingertips.

Instead the agent just began to laugh "I'm afraid that's where I stop talking subject-0515. Sorry maybe you'll have better luck next time" he laughed as a beeping started to come out of his coat.

'And I was having such a good day' Feral thought as he shouted "BOMB!" and charged forward, if he was quick enough he could throw the man into the alley leading to the club. IF, it was a very big if, but if he could manage it he could stop any innocent people from getting hurt.

Everything just slowed down inside the club; everyone dived for cover at the word bomb. Garrus grabbed Tali who had frozen at the word and the sight of Feral holding onto the man regardless. She saw him get close to the door, his omni-tool lighting up and she could see the shimmer of his shields bulking up around the front of his body. She then watched as he threw the agent out of his arms, watching the flailing man fly out of the door as Feral brought his arms up in front of his head.

Suddenly time seemed to speed up again as she watched the explosion erupt through the door of the club. Her eyes wide as she watched Feral get yanked off his feet and thrown back at the force of the explosion. Losing sight of him as smoke quickly filled up the club, before finally she shrieked.

"FERAL!"


	11. The Aftermath

Flux was filled with smoke, the sound of people screaming as they tried to escape from the club. Bouncers were filing people out of the doors and into the wards. Shepard was picking himself up off the floor, wandering through the smoke filled room as his ears rung. The explosion hadn't caused any damage to the structure but the blast and shock wave had blown back the tables and destroyed the bar area.

The commander was standing up in the middle of the club, looking around. Kaidan was behind him, slowly pushed himself off the ground. Tali and Garrus were also picking themselves up, dusting themselves off. They had been the closest to the agent when Feral had shouted that dreaded word….bomb. Then he realised he couldn't see Feral anywhere, he had dived for cover instantly and now he couldn't see him

"FERAL?" Shepard shouted out, stumbling around over a knocked over bar table. His eyes darting around the club as he desperately tried to find the man. Scanning around the bar until finally he saw something on the floor, blood. It had to be been Feral's but it had been smeared along the floor as if he had moved.

Shepard followed the trail before he finally saw Feral, who'd propped himself up against a wall. The commander couldn't believe that he'd been able to move when he saw him; let alone speak.

"Hey Shepard" Feral groaned out, his breathing was forced. He was having trouble getting the words out. "I am never drinking" Feral coughed, a small amount of blood splattering onto the ground "ever again" he tried to laugh but just ended up moaning in agony.

Feral was slumped out against the wall, his head laying back. His legs were out in front of him and his arms were limp against his thighs. Feral had taken the brunt of both the explosion and the shock wave and he was in a bad way because of it.

The cuts on his face were already starting to close up, but his eyes were bloodshot and it looked like he was having trouble focusing on anything. He had a few large gashes on his chest and sides but he guessed the man's shields had stopped the majority of it. But the sound of Feral's breathing was worrying him, even with his titanium reinforced bones it sound like the man's lungs were having issues.

The most obvious problem was Feral's arms and legs. He'd obviously built up his shields around his head and chest; the shielding hadn't protected the rest of his body as much. Feral's arms and legs had been torn apart in several places. Missing pieces of flesh and muscle were making the titanium weaving on his bones shine out slightly on his forearms and hands. His legs weren't fairing any better and he was bleeding badly out of the gaping flesh wounds.

Shepard had looked over Feral in a second, jumping forward and letting his combat training take effect. His omni-tool lighting up as he started to apply medi-gel in all the places he could. He could see Feral's regeneration was working but the damage was so deep, the man could bleed out before his body could heal. "MEDIC!" Shepard called back to his team without ever turning around; he was working as fast as he could.

For the first time since he had met Feral, he was in a situation where the man could actually die on him.

Kaidan had made his way over to Garrus and Tali, all three of them were disorientated. The blast had hit them and knocked them down, but apart from their head's hurting and feeling very sore. They were all ok. All three of them were scanning around the room, Feral had yet to be seen and Shepard had disappeared into the distance. Tali practically felt her heart stop when she heard Shepard screaming medic through the smoke.

Kaidan and Garrus were the first to react to the call, running in the direction of the scream. Their military training kicking in as they rushed towards the position, moving out of sight as Tali just stood there. Feral was hurt….he was hurt badly and the sound of Shepard's scream. It was panicked, she knew what that meant and finally she was able to bolt forward. Following her friends quickly around the corner.

She stopped when she saw all the blood on the floor, footprints had smudged it but she could see it smeared off towards Shepard. Gasping and panting as she followed the trail around the corner, her eyes just stared at the scene in front of her.

Garrus was standing over them, she could hear him calling for the Normandy to ready the medical bay. Shepard had ordered them to be on standby, Chakwas was the best doctor he knew and the only one he trusted in this situation.

Both Kaidan and Shepard were applying whatever medi-gel they had onto Feral, she could see them talking as they tried to figure out the best places to put it.

Then she saw Feral and once again her heart stopped, her friend was slumped against the wall. Blood dripping out of the corners of his mouth, his eyes were blood shot and she couldn't even see where his pupils began. His face had blood on it as well but she could see the cuts closing up, her heart starting at that. It meant his regeneration was still working, but the sight of his arms and legs quickly made her stop celebrating.

She could see the shimmer of his bones, the metal weaved into his skeleton was making the light shine slightly off of them. All of the skin on the backs of his arms had been torn away, blood constantly leaking out onto the floor and onto his legs. He was bleeding out, the wounds to his arms and legs were deep and there was so much blood. A normal human would have been dead by now, but Feral was barely hanging on by a thread.

She just watched helplessly as the men worked, a group of the Normandy's crew members suddenly burst into Flux carrying a stretcher with them. They'd been in C-sec and had grabbed a stretcher from Dr Michel's clinic when they had heard the news of the explosion. They had no idea what had happened to Feral, they'd simply wanted to help any of the wounded.

Tali watched as they moved Feral onto the stretcher, they had managed to stop most of the bleeding, but he was still in trouble. He had lost a lot of blood and his skin was even paler than usual, he needed to get to Chakwas fast. She just watched as the carefully picked up the stretcher he was laying on. As the men, including Shepard and Kaidan, ran out of Flux. Feral had looked over at her as he was lifted away, a small smile on his face when he felt he look back.

Garrus had managed to radio forward to Chakwas, he'd explained the situation to her and she told him she'd be ready for Feral to arrive. It'd take Shepard and the group about 5 minutes to get back to the Normandy if they moved fast, C-Sec was close and the elevator that led to the Normandy would really be the longest part of their journey. He sighed as he closed his omni-tool, looking down around his feet, there was a lot of blood but Feral was tough. Garrus knew the man would make it, there was no way some Cerberus coward was going to kill him like that. He was going to step out of the club when he saw Tali, the poor quarian was paralyzed.

Garrus walked over to her and looked down into her eyes "Tali, he's going to be ok" he was trying to reassure her.

Tali looked back at him before looking back at the blood on the floor "B-but….Garrus I could see the bones in his arm….there's so much blood!" she stuttered out, panicking slightly

"He's also one of the toughest bastards I've ever known Tali" he kept his voice calm, not uncaring. He was extremely worried but right now he had to be strong for Tali. "If anyone can survive that, it's him. He's on his way to Chakwas now Tali, he'll make it I promise"

Tali just nodded slightly, Garrus was right. If anyone could it would be him, but even so. She couldn't help but consider this would be the last time she ever saw Feral alive.

"Tali we should go back to the Normandy" Garrus just said, putting a hand on her shoulder "Don't you want to be there when he pulls through?" Garrus had said when even though he really meant if, but it seemed to work. Tali nodded again in agreement and the two silently walked off as C-sec started to flood into the club. They were amazed that there had only been one casualty in the explosion, if Feral was going to die. He was going to die a hero to all the people in Flux.

- 1 hour later, Normandy's mess hall-

The entire squad stood in the mess hall in silence, Shepard had explained what happened to Liara, Ashley and Wrex. Wrex had mumbled something about a Krogan being able to handle something like that before he had returned to the lower deck. If Feral died it meant that wasn't deserving of them but if Feral survived, the krogan would have to toughen him up a little. One little bomb shouldn't have caused the super soldier so much damage.

Ashley was worried about Feral, she'd been looking for the chance to get him back for his prank on her that morning. But now she just wanted him to survive, maybe she'd consider getting him back in the future once he was better. Ash just sat with Tali, the two had formed somewhat of a sisterly relationship together, she reminded the marine of one of her younger sisters. Tali could kick ass but she was also a very caring person, Ash couldn't help but just try and get her through this.

Liara was just sitting next to Shepard, she wanted to comfort him but the commander was just sitting there, staring at the door to the med bay. He hadn't even cleaned the blood of his hands. She was worried. Shepard had told her about how they had lost Jenkins on Eden Prime. He'd never really gotten over losing the young man and she knew that losing Feral would mark the commander even more. She just squeezed her hand gently on his forearm, even if he didn't acknowledge her she'd let him know she was there.

Kaidan and Garrus just sat at the back, waiting for Chakwas to finally give them the news. They had both seen Feral get wounded and they'd both seen him walk the wound off. Seeing Feral in that state had them both considering his mortality, they both were guilty of taking advantage of Feral's regeneration. Situations where they could've stepped forward and taken the lead but Feral had instead, and instead of arguing they just fell into line. Neither of them ever thought that they'd be waiting to find out if Feral was still alive.

The wait was a silent, nightmare. No word from inside the med bay, Chakwas had locked the door so her team could work. The crew of the ship went about their duties but the feelings of the main squad resounded around the ship. Not knowing was the worst thing. Until finally, Chakwas walked out of the med bay. Everyone just looked up, hope in their eyes as the doctor finally spoke.

"It was touch and go from the very start, I've never worked on someone with such a unique biology. He went into cardiac arrest a few times from the shock and blood loss. I'm sorry Commander…"she tapered out; the entire team just closed their eyes and let their eyes drop to the ground. No one could believe what they were hearing.

"But you're going to have to deal with Feral another day" the doctor finally smiled, finally finishing her sentence "He's alive and he should be sleeping but he's refusing" her hands jolting up into the air, Shepard was about to stand up and walk into the room. "Before any of you go in, he's still in pain. His arms and legs are broken and the skin is still closing up. I didn't want to risk using grafts because I'm still unsure how he'd process them. He's healing commander and he's healing faster than anyone I've ever seen. According to him, he'll be back in action in a few days, maybe less" she finally nodded at the group and stepped off.

Shepard jumped up from his seat and quickly walked into the room, he was joined by Kaidan and Garrus who had run around from their seats. The sight of the bandaged up Feral caught them by surprise but he was laying back on one of the medical beds, smiling and holding up one his strapped and bandaged arms.

"Hey…so I guess this answers the 'can I catch a missile with my face?' question huh?" Feral smirked as he let his arm fall back down to the bed, wincing as he forgot. His arms and legs were strapped in place, it was easier than a cast and it'd keep his limbs straight while his bones reformed around the metal cores, the bandages had a slight red colour to them. He wasn't bleeding anymore but his wounds were still healing, so a little blood still seeped into the bandage.

"Well…..technically it was a bomb Feral" Garrus snorted as the three stepped up to his bed "but I guess it was in the air when it exploded sooo….close enough" Feral laughed loudly before groaning again.

"Christ Garrus, you have to make me laugh? My chest may look fine but it's still sore" he grinned back at the turian, his shirt had been cut off but luckily the cuts had quickly healed. Like Chakwas had said his regeneration had quickly caught up to the damage.

"You're lucky to be alive Feral" Shepard cut through the laughing, he crossed his arms "Why didn't you get to cover?" He needed to know what had gone through the man's head.

Feral sighed "If I had just thrown him from where I was, the bomb would've gone off inside Flux. I had to get closer to the door before I threw him." He looked up at the commander "Did anyone else get hurt?"

Shepard sighed before shaking his head "No, because of what you did you probably saved a lot of people's lives. Good job Feral" he finally smiled and let his hands drop to his sides again "but….don't ever accept anonymous drinks again, that's an order" he stepped back and walked out of the room, he had to go and clean Feral's blood of his hands. The sound of Feral laughing and then moaning filling the room as Kaidan and Garrus started talking to him.

Shepard walked out and saw Ashley, Liara and Tali talking amongst themselves, Tali was clearly itching to see Feral but Ashley had persuaded her to wait for the men to be done in there. Trying to talk over them would be difficult and she had the feeling she'd rather talk to him alone.

Shepard just smiled as he walked up to the three "Well he's ok, he won't be walking around for a little while longer but he's fine", the three women smiled they were all glad to hear it. "Now if you excuse me, I need to wash up and figure out what the hell I'm going to tell Udina" Shepard rolled his eyes at that. He was sure he'd get to find out the definition of 'political shitstorm' this time.

Tali finally got up and walked off towards the med bad, leaving Ashley to talk to Liara. Ashley had nowhere else to be and Liara couldn't go back to her office quite yet, she wanted to give Feral a little privacy for a while.

"So Liara….you and the commander..." Tali heard Ashley ask from behind her, the rest of the sentence trailing off as the door shut behind her.

Tali could hear what the three men were talking about, all three of them were joking about what had happened. She wasn't listening though, her eyes were just focused on Feral. He still looked a mess, his arms and legs were bound and bandaged up. His eyes were still slightly bloodshot and he couldn't breathe without a slight wheezing. He was coughing and groaning every time he tried to laugh. Tali was thrilled he was alive, but to see the man in such a state hurt.

"Hey Tali" she looked up as she heard Feral's voice, he was smiling at her and she couldn't help but smile back slightly.

"Hey" she quietly said back, waving her hand slightly.

Garrus and Kaidan just exchanged looks with each other before patting Feral's leg "We'll talk to you later buddy, don't stay in bed for too long" Feral winced and glared at the two as they walked out chuckling.

"Bastards" Feral snorted out as he sat up as much as he can, he was staring at Tali. The woman was just standing there, looking at him. "Why don't you grab the stool behind you and sit down?" he offered gently.

Tali just spun around and saw the metal stool behind her, she quickly bent over and picked it up. Walking over to Feral and sat down on it, looking down at the floor. She sighed, she had no idea what to say or do. She was happy he was alive but it killed her to know that he had gone through so much pain again. She couldn't even look at him until suddenly she felt something on her helmet.

Feral had put a hand to the side of helmet, gently tilting her head up until he could see her eyes and he asked her "Are you ok Tali?" That was when she couldn't hold it anymore, she could see the worry in his eyes and she heard it in his voice. Feral had endured so much pain, he'd been poisoned and blown up. Tali had come into here to comfort him but she'd frozen up, now the man was worrying about her. All of those emotions exploded in her mind, and she did the only thing she could think of.

Feral was looking into the glowing eyes of the quarian, he was worried about her. She wasn't fidgeting, rubbing her hands or saying anything. It was unlike the bubbly woman and it was worrying, when someone's character changed so dramatically it never meant anything good. He stared into her eyes, trying to work out the emotions running through them before suddenly he felt her lunge forward. Her arms wrapping around his neck and her visor pushing into his shoulder.

Feral just sat there as the quarian buried herself into his shoulder and neck, his bound arms hovering in the air behind her before he slowly placed them on her back. He couldn't bend them at all but he'd still return the embrace. He was about to talk but she beat him to it.

"I thought you were going to die" he could hear it in her voice, she was trying so hard not to cry "I was so scared Feral" his eyes closed at that and he just pushed his head into her head cloth.

He sighed into the soft material surrounding the sides of her helmet "Tali I'm sorry I didn't mean.." he was cut off as Tali suddenly pushed him back, holding his shoulders with her outstretched arms. Feral just held his arms in the air on either side of hers, he didn't understand what was going on.

"Why?...why are you sorry?" Tali spoke each word slowly "You got poisoned and then blown up…and I couldn't do anything. I just watched as it all happened. I should be the sorry one" she was losing her grip on her own emotions, her voice shaking as she saw Feral's face drop before he smiled again

"Why are you smiling?" Tali quietly cried "I promised you that I'd help and I didn't. I failed you Feral" this time it was Tali's turn to be surprised. Feral had placed both of his hands on Tali's helmet, bringing her towards him using his strength to overpower Tali, but not to hurt her. He pushed his forehead into her visor, his eyes were closed and Tali just sat there, rubbing her hands gently together as she waited.

Feral slowly opened his eyes and stared into her eyes, he could see her eyes fixing on his. He gently rubbed his fingers against the sides of her helmet, he didn't know if she could feel it but it felt like the right thing to do. "Tali you didn't fail me. You never have, the moment you fail me is the moment you're not here" he spoke forcefully, not to intimidate her but to make sure she understood

"Whenever I needed you, you've been right here. When I was working through my identity crisis, you were there for me. And now? Just look Tali, here you are." Feral smiled as he pushed his forehead into her visor gently. He could see the woman's lips curling up slightly.

Tali was staring back into his eyes, the deep red orbs that were looking so kindly through her visor. His face was so close to hers and she could feel his hands holding her head up. She wondered if he'd be this close to her if she didn't have a visor in the way. She raised her hands up and squeezed them around his, pushing his hands into her helmet more. Tali had seen the man's strength, and yet she was finding comfort in him holding her head.

"Feral you've done so much for me, you defended me, you confided in me and you've saved my life countless times. Including today's bomb attack." Tali sighed "I just wish I was strong enough to do the same for you" closing her eyes as she just rubbed his fingers gently in her hands.

"Tali you've already done all of that" Feral's words were quiet "You may not believe it but you're already so strong Tali. You shot me in that Geth base and you stood up to me in this very room." He smiled, Tali just looked at him confused "I know what you're thinking Tali and shush just for now" he laughed gently

"I can't even begin to imagine having to be asked to shoot someone, Tali you had no idea if I really could survive it. You did it anyway, you believed in my words enough to do something that your mind was screaming at you not to" Feral was still smiling "and then in this room, after I had been shot again. After I had spent all day tearing things apart and I even shouted at you. You stopped me, you stood up to me despite everything I had done. Then you saved me from myself."

Tali smiled up at the man, this time it was a full smile. Feral was right, even though she hadn't taken a bullet for him. She had done so much in her very own way. "Tali there isn't a single living being in the universe I trust more than you. There is no one I'd rather have here over you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me" Feral smiled as he nuzzled his forehead into the area of her visor that rested over hers.

"You're the best friend I've ever had Tali and the strongest person I know" he leaned back slowly, one of his hands staying at her cheek. The woman was holding it to her head so tightly and leaning into his bigger hand. She was blushing furiously behind her visor, biting her lip to try and stop herself grinning like an idiot.

Tali managed to hold her excitement at the man's words, but her hips gave her away as she wiggled slightly on the seat. "Feral….I…..thank you" smiling back at the man as they sat together "I feel exactly the same as you" Feral had been so kind to her, they'd only known each other for a few weeks and he'd never been anything but good to her. She had never been just a quarian to him, he'd always treated her like everyone else.

"Good" Feral smiled happily as he stretched his legs out, groaning slightly "Thank you for coming to talk to me Tali and I promise not to get blown up again too soon" they both laughed at that "Not being able to walk is getting irritating"

Tali just giggled, she could understand. Chakwas' idea of bed rest was exactly that, no moving whatsoever and the doctor could be terrifying when she wanted to be. "Well if you wanted I could get you something to help you pass the time" she smiled happily

Feral snorted slightly "Tali you're already my silver lining, I don't think you need to be my nurse too. But thank you for the offer Ms' Zorah"

Tali quickly looked around before turning back "you're very welcome, Mr Lloyd" she purred out teasingly, flaunting the fact that she knew his name and getting a fake look of shock in return, before Feral laughed again.

"I should get back to the engine room though" Tali said sadly, she really didn't want to go. She was having fun with Feral and his words were still making her blush even now. She'd always hoped, but now she knew. Feral cared about her as well; the moment they had shared had been brief but wonderful. She hated that she had to leave, she hated that she had to wear a suit. She just wanted to spend more time with him.

"Well you know where I am and….where I will be until the doctor gives me the all clear" Feral sighed and rolled his eyes as he laid back again, smiling the moment his eyes went back to Tali "Feel free to come by whenever you want. A silver lining as beautiful as you is always a pleasant sight" Feral closed his eyes as he wiggled himself into a comfortable position.

"You're pretty good to look at as well" Tali purred dreamily before instantly bolting up as she realised she'd said it and not thought it. Feral just looked up at the quarian, his red eyes looking at her questioningly before she just stood up and said "Keelah I didn't mean…erm…what I mean is….err….talk to you later Feral" and quickly hurried out of the room, she couldn't believe what she just done. 'Stupid stupid STUPID!' she mentally hit herself as she walked away as calmly as possible, her face couldn't get any hotter as she thought about what she'd just said.

Feral just laid back in his bed, blinking a couple of times before biting his lip to stifle a chuckle. He had forgotten he was shirtless and he was getting pretty red at the realisation Tali had enjoyed the sight. He slid back down and pulled the sheet over himself as he decided to get some rest.

Silently admitting to himself that despite his best efforts not to, he had very much enjoyed the sight her walking away from him. Slapping himself on the head as he remembered the way her hips had swung from side to side as she walked out before moaning in pain. Not only his arm felt like it was on fire, but his head rang as the remnants of a concussion healed.

"That's what I get for looking at her arse" the British in Feral bleeding through as he grabbed his head, the man chuckling at the instant karma while he seethed in pain.

- Ambassador Udina's Office, 3 hours later –

Shepard was waiting for the human politician. Udina had requested to see the commander, and seeing as Shepard had decided the Normandy would stay in dock until Feral was good to go, had come straight away. He knew what this was going to be about, Udina had gotten pissed over a small fire fight in the wards. A bomb going off in Flux must have given the man an aneurysm.

Luckily for the commander, Anderson had been waiting for him. The old soldier had been in the ambassador's office and Shepard had told him what had happened. It wasn't good for either of them, they had been keeping Feral a secret from the politician. Udina wouldn't have cared about the repercussions of trying to find out Feral's identity the moment it became known that he was once Alliance, a fact that they would have to tell Udina. The politician wasn't going to take "we don't know" and they both groaned at that. If the worst happened, Shepard had decided, he was going to use his Spectre status to completely override the man. He hoped it wouldn't come to that but even Anderson suggested it, they both knew it would probably boil down to that.

The door's to the office opened and the man they were waiting for, the one man they didn't want to see, walked into the room. "Shepard what the hell is going on?" Udina instantly shouted "Fire fights in the back alleys of the wards were bad enough but a bomb in Flux? Are you trying to kill me commander?"

Shepard and Anderson both rose to their feet, Shepard using his height to make Udina think twice before he tried to confront him, "Ambassador you make it sound like I planned to get attacked by a suicide bomber"

"Because you're not currently hunting down Saren Arterius. How foolish of me Shepard, how could I possibly think that someone wouldn't be trying to kill you?" Udina sneered in response "Shepard I'm more interested in what you were doing in the club in the first place and who this is" he suddenly threw down pictures onto the desk, they were blown up images of Feral from a security camera.

Anderson spoke up for Shepard "Oh come on Udina, you can't honestly expect Shepard and his men to never get a chance to relax. They are hunting down a rogue Spectre across the entire galaxy. A few hours in a bar while they restock isn't something to complain about" Udina just glared at the Captain before Shepard spoke up

"As for who he is Ambassador. He is a member of my squad" Shepard just responded "I don't have to explain anymore to you"

"No commander you do, Spectre or not you still represent humanity and eye witnesses say this man was the target of the bomber" Udina lit up his omni-tool and a voice rang out, it was a witnesses statement about the attack and it described everything in great detail "Commander how long has he been on the team and who is he?"

"We picked him up before the Noveria mission and his codename is Feral" Shepard just calmly replied, clearly annoying Udina further

"I didn't ask what his codename was Shepard, I asked WHO he is" Udina snapped

"Shepard doesn't have to explain any more to you, he's a Spectre and he answers to the council Udina. Not you" Anderson raised his voice but didn't shout. "Who he picks for his team is his choice"

"It concerns me Anderson because the council has caught wind of a rumour involving this mystery man. There's talk he's some kind of super soldier and the council is trying to discover if the Alliance is using Shepard to field test him!" Udina shouted back, Shepard inwardly groaned. Of course a rumour was bound to get out and of course the council would hear it. There was no escaping this now.

Shepard looked over at Anderson, who just sighed and nodded his head. "The rumours are true in some respect. He is a super soldier but he's not Alliance. We found him when we were investigating Admiral Kahoku's death; he was in one of the Cerberus bases we hit. He was given the choice to either find his own way off world or he could help me. Considering I was the only way off world he chose to come with me" Shepard lied in part, Udina couldn't smell a lie and Shepard took advantage of Feral's lessons in what he'd dubbed 'lie detection evasion', small tricks to hide lies from even the most experienced eyes.

Udina just listened before sighing "You found him in a Cerberus base? Did it not occur to you that he's one of them?" he was growling slightly

"Yes, it did. But there is more than enough evidence to suggest that he's not" Shepard just replied

"Such as commander?" Udina looked questioningly

"He told me he wasn't" Shepard smirked, he enjoyed riling the man up. It was a guilty pleasure that most people who knew Udina enjoyed.

"I'm glad you think this is all some big joke Shepard, Flux has been bombed because of this man" Udina stepped forward only for Shepard to lean down and glare back at him.

"I'm sure if you watch the whole security footage it'll become more than clear that Feral is the only reason why no one was killed other than the bomber" He stated "I trust him and his actions today saved lives, not just human lives either. If the council have concerns over him and the fact that I trust him with my life isn't enough. Tell them to contact me personally so I can explain directly to them" he'd had enough of Udina, Feral was a bloody hero and he didn't need a politician destroying that.

"If that's all I'll be going now" he shoved his way past the Ambassador

"Actually commander the council wanted me to pass this along to you" Udina said, you could hear he wasn't at all happy with the commander's actions "A salarian STG team has gone dark on Virmire, Saren is suspected to have a base there. They suggested that it be the next place you look"

Shepard just nodded and noted the amused look on Anderson's face, he smiled as he walked out of the door. Anderson hated Udina just as much as Shepard did and he really did enjoy watching Shepard use his spectre status to block out the politician.

'Virmire' the commander thought to himself. A suspected location of Saren's base, the moment Feral was moving again. They'd be heading there immediately.

- The Normandy –

The Normandy was still docked in the Citadel and Shepard had called for the crew to stand down. A skeleton crew wasn't necessary when they weren't in flight. Most of the crew had disappeared into the Citadel, they'd sleep in hotels and proper beds for the night as opposed to the sleeper pods. A small number of the crew had stayed on board though. Chakwas had stayed behind to keep an eye on Feral much to his dismay, the pain had gone and he was sure that he was fine to move around. But the doctor had insisted he slept in the med bay until morning just to be certain.

The rest of Shepard's squad had stayed on board and most of them were asleep in their sleeper pods. Liara was back in her office and she'd managed to talk to Feral briefly, she had thanked him for talking to Shepard about them. His advice had helped Shepard and Liara talk more and she just wanted to let him know that she was grateful, but she did ask that he keep it to himself. Feral agreed and wished her good luck, laughing as she had walked off with a blush on her face.

Kaidan, Garrus and Ashley had all gone to sleep but they had spent some time with Feral, before being kicked out by Chakwas who had told them Feral was going to rest or she was going to have to give him a sedative. Super soldier or not, she was insisting that the man get rest after being blown up.

Tali had watched the 3 get kicked out by Chakwas before sighing, she had hoped to come back and explain herself to Feral. She run out after saying something she never should have. Feral was her best friend and she'd accidentally let slip that she'd been 'checking him out' as humans put it. She couldn't deny that she found Feral attractive, he was strong, smart, his red eyes were incredibly handsome and most of all he was the nicest person she'd ever met. Still, it didn't excuse her behaviour and she wanted to apologize to him, she didn't want to lose him as a friend because she had said something stupid.

She sighed as she made her way back to her cot in the engine room; she was so scared her selfish actions were going to cost her Feral's friendship. He was injured, lying in the med bay with broken arms and legs after being blown up. His shirt had been cut off, because he had been hit in the chest with shrapnel and he'd had a few heart attacks while Chakwas had saved his life, and she had taken advantage of that fact to eye him up.

She laid in her cot, trying to sleep as she constantly thought about the whole thing. He had called her beautiful, even now that made her smile and blush. He probably didn't mean it a way that was anything but friendly but still…she'd never been called that before and it was getting to her. The shock of his words had caused her outburst and she found herself thinking about Feral again. He wasn't huge but everything was just perfect on him, his muscles were so defined and thanks to his metabolism his skin was constantly warm.

She slapped herself in the head, making her head jar around in the helmet. 'KEELAH! What's wrong with me' she mentally screamed at herself. She was already worried that thinking like that was going to lose her a friend. She sighed to herself, the feeling of Feral's arms around her and the image of his face pressing against her visor were still so prevalent in her mind.

Maybe once she apologized to Feral she could forget about this stupid, selfish infatuation.


	12. Virmire

The Normandy was buzzing, the crew's night off had proven popular and now all the service men and women were back at their posts. Just waiting for Shepard to give them their next orders. They all knew he was waiting for Feral to be cleared for service but at the rate the man bounced back from things. Everyone knew that'd be heading off to their next destination soon, Virmire.

All of Shepard's team, save Wrex, were at the mess hall table eating breakfast. They'd asked Liara how Feral had looked as she had walked out but she said the man was completely covered in his blanket while he slept. She couldn't see anything but Chakwas seemed pleased, apparently while Feral had been sleeping he had been moving a lot more naturally and his stiffness was fading fast. They all smiled at that, they still couldn't believe a living being could walk away from wounds like that after a single day. Feral definitely lived up to the term 'super soldier'.

Tali was feeling mixed emotions though; she was happy to hear Feral would be up and about soon but she was panicking as she realised that he'd be up and about. She didn't want to avoid him but she still had no idea what to say to him. She was sitting at the table in silence as everyone talked around her, she was facing the med bay so she'd see Feral when he finally came out. Maybe she'd know what to say then.

As if on cue the med bay door's opened and Feral stepped out, he was looking back and she could see the man smile back at the doctor. Chakwas had obviously warned Feral that he was not to be back in her med bay, she always told that to people when they left. Most people were so scared of the woman they never got wounded again, but Feral had just laughed at the threat.

Tali's mind went crazy, seeing him hadn't helped at all. 'Crap, ok ok ok. Don't say anything now, just act normally and Keelah his eyes….' she sighed '…..oh forget this' She suddenly sat up from the table "Excuse me, I need to get back to the engine room" bolting out of the room as fast as she could and into the elevator. She was so grateful for her suit right now as she fidgeted nervously in the elevator, hoping Feral wouldn't follow her in. She sighed sadly when the doors finally shut, she had no idea how she was going to face him anytime soon.

Feral just watched the small quarian bolt across the room, he wondered if she was ok because she was running pretty quickly. He was about to follow her but another voice had caught his attention.

"Hey Feral, good to see you moving around again" Garrus called over, the rest of the table had turned around at his words. Feral just smiled back and stepped towards the group, "You look pretty good for a guy that got blown up yesterday" he clicked playfully

"Shut up before you make me blush Garrus" Feral smirked at the turian "Well at least I'll never be as ugly as you"

Garrus snickered "Hah, very funny. I'll have you know that for a turian I'm considered quite a catch" Feral along with Kaidan and Ashley just raised their eyebrows at him. "….What?" the three humans just started laughing as Garrus looked at them blankly.

Kaidan finally spoke up again as the three of them laughed "Anyway, has the doc cleared you Feral?" he looked back at him and waited for him to recompose himself.

Feral just stretched his arms out as he smiling "Yep I'm all good to go, all the bones and cuts have fixed themselves" he bounced gently on the spot "I'd do cartwheels to prove it to you even more but…well I can't do cartwheels." He just finished as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Ashley just laughed even more at the thought of the man trying and failing to do any sort of gymnastics. "Well you could try anyway, what's the worst that could happen?" she snickered, this was her pay back. The man would end up doing a cartwheel if it killed her.

Feral just stared back at her as he tried to stammer out a response "erm….I'd love to Ash but…." He heard a noise come from the other side of the room and Shepard stepped out into the mess hall 'Oh thank Christ for you' "Shepard!" Feral called out across the room, noting the scowl on Ashley's face before he just stuck his tongue out at the woman, quickly standing back normally as Shepard turned to him.

Shepard's head jolted up across the room at the sound of his name being called, Feral was standing there and just gave a small wave before he walked up behind Kaidan and Garrus who were trying not to laugh at Ashley's angry face.

"So you all ready to go again?" Shepard asked Feral, he still couldn't really believe that he was looking so well again. It'd only been about 12 hours since he'd been a bloody mess in Flux. Feral just nodded and smirked up at the commander "Good, go and get ready then. I need to tell Joker to get us moving"

Feral just looked confused "We have a heading?" he obviously had been kept out of the loop while he was out.

Shepard just nodded "Salarian STG team on Virmire went missing investigated one of Saren's bases and we're going to get them"

Shepard started going off towards the cockpit, Joker would be there waiting for the word. He saw Feral grin happily at the news as he walked off.

"Aye aye Commander" Feral was itching for a fight, cracking his knuckles before he and the rest of the squad at the table moved to the elevator. They were about to hit Saren hard, straight where it was going to hurt.

- Planet Virmire-

The Normandy was approaching the planet, Shepard's entire squad had spent the trip preparing for the fight to come. Checking weapons and armour were all to the task at hand, this was going to be one hell of a fight if a Salarian STG team were having issues.

Feral had fitted all of his armour back on and spent time readjusting his shields; Shepard had given him a new omni-tool after his had been destroyed in Flux. It didn't take long for the technician to remove all the crap out of the software and its runtimes were significantly improved. His knife had been sharpened and his weapons were ready to go, Ashley had seen to that. He'd even put his recon hood on, this was going to be a fast and heavy mission. Even if it didn't offer as much protection as a full helmet it was better than just his skull.

The entire team was sitting in the lower deck, just waiting for the landing. The tension was starting to get to them all and especially the soldiers of the group were itching to get into battle. Liara and Tali were looking forward to the fight, but they didn't quite share the same adrenaline rush as the rest of the team. Though for Tali, getting a few shotgun rounds into the Geth would help get her mind off things….off Feral.

Feral had noticed Tali was avoiding him, and as he sat by one of the terminals with Kaidan his eyes did dart across the quarian. He knew it was about the night before but now wasn't the time. They were going into a combat zone and they'd have time after the mission to talk. Suddenly Joker's voice rang out over the intercom.

"We're approaching Virmire Commander, I'm picking up a signal from the surface. It must be our STG team"

Kaidan pointed at the terminal next to him "Yh but look at those AA towers. We can't land with those things up and running"

Shepard hit the intercom to reply to Joker "We'll drop in the mako and take out the towers, Joker you wait until we give the word and then land as close to the Salarians as you can"

"Aye aye commander, I'll drop you in under the radar. ETA 10 minutes" the intercom buzzed out as Shepard turned towards the entire squad, grabbing his rifle and shotgun before stepping back towards the Mako.

"Feral, Kaidan and Tali. Grab your gear and mount up" Shepard ordered before he hit the door to the Mako "Everyone else, get your gear sorted and be ready for when the Normandy lands."

"Good hunting Shepard" Ashley called over as the squad he picked filed into the tank. Feral climbed up into the gunnery position and Tali and Kaidan locked themselves into the seats.

"Try not to get killed" Wrex added before laughing, Shepard rolled his eyes as he stepped in.

Shepard laughed "Thanks Wrex, I'll try to remember that" pulling the hatch closed as he climbed past Tali and Kaidan and into the driver's seat. Pulling the straps in place across his body as he waited for the Mako to go flying out of the Normandy's cargo door. Luckily for him, the tanks VI would take care of the initial landing.

"Everybody ready?" Shepard looked back over his shoulder, smiling at the resounding yeses.

"Let's go kick Saren where it hurts Shepard" Tali said, causing the rest of the team to snicker.

"Remind me never to make you angry Tali" Feral called down from the gunnery seat, Kaidan and Shepard quietly agreed.

'As if you ever could' Tali quietly thought as suddenly the entire Mako shook and the team braced themselves. Light pouring through the Mako's window screen and into the tank, Feral whooping as they were launched onto Virmire's surface before the tank hit the water hard, the suspension absorbing most of the impact but the occupants still got bounced around a little.

Joker's voice came through the radio in the tank as everyone inside groaned slightly, readjusting themselves in their seats at the harsh landing. "That's a clean drop commander; I'll stay out of range until the guns are done. Joker out"

Shepard cracked his neck as he took control over the mako, the VI landing program having run its course had turned itself off. "Feral be ready with the gun. Tali and Kaidan, keep an eye on the shields and fix anything you can as we go" The squad didn't respond the simply moved and did exactly what they were told. Shepard could hear the terminals that monitored shield strength and armour being moved in the rear compartment and the sound of the machine gun's whirring into life, ready to destroy anything that it was aimed at.

"Alright then, let's take out those guns" Shepard stated as he pushed the mako forward, the terrain was flat for once. That meant Feral could have easy shots and neither Tali nor Kaidan would be nearly throwing up from rolling down a cliff face, that being said there was an edge that lead to the ocean below 'Better steer clear of that'.

The mako was rolling along nicely, they hadn't run into anything yet except a few crap like machines. They hadn't been Geth; Feral had confirmed it himself with the telescopic sight the guns provided. Tali had giggled when he'd ask to take some practice shots anyway, no matter the situation Feral could usually find time to make her smile.

"Uh Shepard, are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Feral called from the gunnery position

"Yes I do Feral, guys hold on" the Mako suddenly lurched to the side as the hydraulics controlling the turret's direction whined into life, followed by the loud repeated thumping of the machine gun. Tali and Kaidan turned to their screens, hitting buttons to redirect power to the shields as necessary. They could hear the rattling of bullets bouncing on the kinetic barriers.

Feral concentrated on the most dangerous Geth platforms first; the larger ones were always the biggest threat. Geth troopers weren't that much of a problem if they were close, Shepard just ran the little things over. He just kept his fingers on the triggers, using the rapid fire weapon to destroy troopers and removing the shields on the more powerful platforms and war machines. The missile launcher was then good option and he had to admit, watching the synthetics explode into tiny pieces of metal and white goo always made me smile. Both Tali and Kaidan could've sworn they could hear him giggling slightly during the lulls in fire.

Feral just kept firing until eventually a structure came into view, a large group of the Geth standing together in a big group. One missile later and the group was gone. He started picking off any other platform he could see until they retreated deeper into the gatehouse. The mako came to a sharp halt in front of the gate, under the lip of the building.

"Ok everyone out, we'll head up and get this gate open on foot" Shepard called back to his team, the entire squad unbuckling themselves as fast as they could. Tali and Kaidan folding their terminals away before Kaidan punched the hatch open. Tali and Shepard quickly bolting out of the door as Kaidan followed, splashing down into the water. The three working their way to the stairs and making sure nothing was coming down. A moment later Feral caught up to them all.

"Ok Feral you go first, then Tali, then me and Kaidan you follow up from the rear. Feral, Tali use your tech skills to your advantage. Kaidan if you can hit them with biotics. Other than that…shoot anything with a light for a head." Everyone just nodded at the commander as Feral took the lead, slowly making his way up the stairs.

He slowly took the stairs step by step, his rifles raised as he peaked over the top of the stairway. Immediately firing at the Geth platforms in front of him before charging forward into the cover provided by the midsection. Tali quickly joined him, kneeling down in front of him as they both turned around the cover to throw out overloads and quick shots at the Geth. Shepard and Kaidan had stayed on the stairwell, using the stairs as cover while peeking up and taking shots at the platforms.

The fire fight was going their way, the Geth platforms couldn't handle the combined effects of overloads hitting their systems and the heavy amounts of gunfire. Then a problem appeared from the control room of the gatehouse, a Juggernaut. He was about to shout at the squad to hit it with everything they had. Feral and Tali would knock out its shields, Kaidan's throws would keep it from charging and then combined fire would put it down for good. But before he even had a chance he noticed Feral had gone.

The Juggernaut charged towards the group 'Where the fuck did he go?' Shepard shouted inside his head, the team needed to get behind whatever they could. The juggernaut had reached the point where the two sides of the building joined again. Then suddenly Feral reappeared. Feral had launched himself sprinting into the side of the giant platform, his speed and strength overcoming the momentum of the juggernaut. Both Feral and the platform went over the edge of the building, the orange pulse of an overload surrounding the two as they disappeared out of sight, before a loud splash was heard.

The three of them just stared at each before they all rushed forward, standing at the dip in the gatehouses buttress guards. "Oh for the love of…Feral!" Shepard called down at the man, who was standing on top of the Juggernaut. He looked back up, the red lenses of his recon hood staring back at the commander, it was obvious that he was smiling.

"What?" he just shrugged "It seemed easier….and more fun" he laughed as he threw away the central processing core out of his hands. He'd torn it out of the platform and half way up his forearm was covered in synthetic blood.

"Just give me a heads up next time?" Shepard groaned, rubbing his forehead. Gesturing for Tali and Kaidan to go on ahead and open the gate. He wondered if Tali had known Feral's idea as she trotted off with the biotic to open the gate and take down the gun. "Go and wait for us in the mako Feral" he finally sighed out, Feral had killed the thing quickly and he couldn't argue with that.

Feral gave Shepard his lazy two fingered salute before realising he'd just smeared geth blood all over his recon hood. "Ahh…fuck it" he snarled as he washed his hand in the water as he walked off to the mako.

Shutting down the gun had been easy with Tali there, the Geth programming was easily overridden by the quarian. Kaidan had gotten the gates open and the three were rushing back to the mako, where Feral had waiting already up in his gunnery position. His recon hood was hanging on one of the steps up to the position, he'd washed it off in the water. He simply grinned at the three as they piled in, Kaidan pulling the hatch shut. Tali just glared up at him, she wished she had warned him about his idea although…it had been pretty awesome to watch, and his smile. She damned his smile as she couldn't help but crack a grin as the mako started moving again.

Eventually the mako rolled into the second gate house, the resistance had scurried back into the structure. But right now a few geth platforms were a joy. Armatures and Colossi had been between the first and second structure, and Feral was panting slightly from how much he'd had to hold the trigger down. He sat in the position shaking his hand slightly before he reached down and grabbed his recon hood, sighing as it was still slightly wet before pulling it back on.

The second gate house had been exactly the same as the first, except Shepard given Feral explicit instructions not to take a dive with a Geth as his partner this time. Feral was going to laugh but Tali had stopped him by cocking her shotgun whilst she glared at him again, he wasn't going to argue with the shotgun toting woman. This time the team moved fast and methodically, overloads and biotic throws kept the Geth at bay whilst quick and accurate rifle and shotgun fire destroyed the machines quickly.

Feral had still managed to get his hands on one of the geth though; a hopper had been bouncing around the gate house before Kaidan had managed to hit it with a warp. Feral had grabbed the annoying bugger whilst it was down, crushing the small machines head before throwing it to one side.

Shepard told Feral to get back to the mako, he wanted the man back on the gun as fast as possible just so they could move immediately once Shepard and the rest of the team were back. He groaned again as Feral opted to take the fast route, jumping down from the raised building. 'Bloody metal implants' he sighed as he waited for Tali and Kaidan to be finished.

As soon as Shepard got back into the mako, he radioed Joker "The AA guns are down, you can make your move to the Salarian camp now." He received a conformation and then the tank pressed on ahead. Shepard chuckling as he heard Feral mutter something about seeing more armatures before looking up as the Normandy flew over them.

"Alright then, let's go Shepard. I'd hate for the party to start without us" Feral just called down and Shepard responded by making the man jolt back into his seat as he suddenly put his foot to the floor. A few rocket drones, and unfortunately for Feral, a single colossus later they had reached another gatehouse. Though this time Feral told them to stay but, the building was lacking buttresses and he opened fire, tearing down the platforms from a distance.

The team moved quickly along the building, putting a few rounds into the head of some still barely functioning Geth. Feral had taken out all of the synthetics before they had managed to take any sort of cover, and as he sat waiting in the Mako. Tali made quick work of the gate and the team was moving on again without any further interference until Joker's voice came out through the intercom again.

"Err Commander we have a small problem. The Normandy is grounded for now, the Salarian captain can explain it to you when you get here" Joker sounded annoyed, he hated getting grounded especially when his 'baby' wasn't in a proper dock. The entire mako groaned, the last thing they needed was a problem. Feral voiced the group's feelings by beating his head into one of the panels in his gunnery position. Luckily for them, they caught a small break in that there was nothing between them and the Salarian camp.

The mako team was trudging their way through the water, Feral was carrying Tali bridal style in his arms. She'd fallen over into the water and before she'd even had a chance to struggle back up to her feet, she'd been hoisted up into his arms. Tali couldn't speak the entire way as Feral carried her, she was just blushing wildly as she felt his strength lift her without even trying and she was pressed up against the very same chest she'd been caught staring at.

She was just thankful it was a short walk, Feral put her down the moment his feet touched the sand. She'd quickly blurted out a thank you before walking away into one of the many Salarian 'tents', leaving Feral standing there watching her. He sighed before he trudged off towards Shepard, Kaidan and Ashley, they were talking with the Salarian captain, he'd have to try to get through to Tali again later. He managed to catch the Salarian introducing himself.

"I'm Captain Kirrahe, 3rd infiltration regiment, STG. You and your men have just landed in a hot zone, every AA gun left in the area is waiting for us to try and escape" the Salarian said. All 4 humans just groaned until Shepard spoke up.

"Wonderful, so what's the next step?" the commander asked

The salarian quickly replied "We wait for the reinforcements that we asked the council for. Then we attack the base and destroy Saren's operations"

Feral raised his hand and waved it slightly "We are the reinforcements, we're all you've got coming"

Shepard quickly added "The transmission we got from you was too messed up to understand properly, the council sent us to investigate"

The salarian captain sighed "Investigate. Investigating is all I've been doing. I lost half my men investigating this place" he started telling the commander as he guessed what the next question was "This place is Saren's base of operations, he has an army of Geth and it's incredibly well fortified. He's breeding an army of Krogan"

All 5 of the soldiers were surprised by the deep sound of Wrex suddenly beside them "How is that possible?"

"Apparently he's found a cure for the genophage. Commander we have to destroy this base and its secrets. An army of Krogan would be nearly unstoppable" Kirrahe finished, convinced it was the right thing.

"Oh I don't think so" Wrex growled out "My people are dying, we need that cure to survive" he stepped towards the Salarian.

"We can't risk letting the Krogan population explode, we cannot allow ourselves to make the same mistake again" the Salarian recoiled as a finger was thrust into his face.

"We…are not a mistake" Wrex snarled before walking off angrily.

The group was left in silence before the captain spoke again "Will he be a problem? We already have enough angry Krogan running around here. Please take care of him Shepard. I'll be in my tent thinking of our next step, come and see me when he's been dealt with" Kirrahe marched off into his tent, leaving the 4 humans behind.

Shepard sighed loudly 'Great….how the hell do get Wrex to calm down?" he turned towards Feral. "I'm going to go and talk to Wrex. Feral I want you close by, you're the only person here capable of subduing him. I'd rather not have someone die today" Feral just nodded and walked off, he'd be in an off location. Waiting to see if he was needed.

Feral watched the conversation between Shepard and Wrex, he could see it was heated. The Krogan was angry. 'Don't do anything stupid Wrex, please don't do anything stupid'. He then watched as Wrex drew his shotgun and aimed it straight at Shepard, he mentally screamed at himself. 'Me and my big freaking mouth!' That was it, he had to make a move. He had to be in position if the worst came to worst, he silently made his way around the back of the Krogan.

The conversation slowly got louder and louder as he moved closer and he could hear Shepard talking "Wrex this isn't a cure it's a weapon! Saren's using them to create an army, is that what you want for the krogan?" Feral stopped, those words had affected him too. He was exactly the same as the Krogan in that base, a weapon. The thought of an army of him scared the super soldier. He quickly shook those thoughts out of his head, he'd missed what Wrex had said but the krogan was putting his shotgun back.

Feral sighed loudly "Oh thank god for that" before he suddenly found a red fist flying at his head. Black and then sky, Shepard and Wrex were standing over him as he lay sprawled out on the sand. His recon hood had been taken off so Shepard could see when the man regained consciousness.

"What the hell just happened?" Feral groaned out, clutching his jaw and nose in his hands.

Shepard just laughed "I think you scared Wrex Feral"

Wrex growled at Shepard as he grabbed Feral and dragged him to his feet. "He didn't scare me Shepard, but he's a quiet bastard. It's only a natural response to attack something sneaking up behind you….for a krogan at least" he grinned at the glaring super soldier "Besides he's fine…just a broken nose" the krogan laughed as he walked away.

Shepard winced as Feral snapped his nose back in place, the cartilage moving straight back into the right position as Feral bit his lip. "Who would've thought Wrex could be jumpy?" he groaned loudly. Shepard just put his arm over his shoulder and helped Feral back towards the camp, patting his chest as he laughed. "Have you ever been punched in the head by a krogan Shepard?"

"Can't say I have…..yet" Shepard smirked

"Then stop laughing until you do because it fucking hurts" Feral growled loudly.

- 10 minutes later –

Shepard was talking to Kirrahe about their plan of attack, Kaidan and Ashley were offering their input into the plan. It was a pretty simple plan but pulling it off would be anything but that. There'd be two teams. The rest of the 3rd regiment, led by Kirrahe, would be the main assault force and Ashley would join them. The gunnery chief would act as the liaison between Kirrahe and Shepard's teams. Shepard's squad would be much smaller, a shadow team that would rush into the base while the salarians took the flak. They'd punch a hole in the bases defences, letting the salarians push further into the base as well. From there the two teams would take out the base's AA guns, this would let the Normandy drop off a nuclear bomb. The bomb would be guarded by Wrex, Kaidan and Liara who would wait on board the Normandy. Shadow squad would consist of Shepard himself, Tali, Garrus and Feral.

Garrus was a sniper; he was perfect for the infiltration because he could pick off targets from a distance. Plus he had some skill when it came to hacking, he wasn't as good as Tali or Feral but with the three of them combined they'd be causing the Geth some serious trouble.

Tali was an obvious choice, they were heading into a base filled to the brim with Geth. They all knew how to kill the things but as a quarian she was an expert on them. Plus her she had become extremely proficient with a shotgun, so much so that everyone on the Normandy was scared of her when she threatened to go and get it.

Feral was their heavy hitter, the man was a super soldier. They were going to be against Krogan and despite being knocked out by Wrex a minute ago, that had only been because Wrex had surprised him. Feral was probably going to have to take some hits for the squad, but Shepard knew he could handle it. A krogan charging was easy to spot and had nowhere near the same force as the bomb in Flux.

Shepard sighed, this was going to be tough. He was taking a very small team against a large amount of Geth and Krogan. He had faith in his squad and in Kirrahe's men. This mission was the most important one so far, if they didn't succeed they wouldn't be able to stop Saren's plan and the bastard would have Krogan with him.

Shepard called his squad around and explained the mission plan. They all listened intently, but he suspected Feral was keeping quiet just because he still had a small headache. Wrex was a little irritated that he couldn't take part in the assault, but when the commander said he'd be delivering a nuclear weapon the Krogan seemed a little happier.

They were as ready as they could ever be, and as they were moving out of the tent they were sitting in. Captain Kirrahe approached the commander "Is your team ready?" Shepard nodded to the salarian "Good, before we head out I'd like to say a few words to my men if that's ok with you"

"Of course captain, take all the time you need." Shepard smiled at the salarian, he could tell Kirrahe cared about the lives he was commanding. Good, that put his mind at ease knowing he was entrusting Ashley to him.

The captain nodded as he turned towards the rest of his men, many had died already and he would have to inspire them to get them behind the rest of the mission.

"You all know the mission, and what is at stake. I have come to trust each of you with my life, but I have also heard murmurs of discontent. I share your concerns. We are trained for espionage; we would be legends, but the records are sealed. Glory in battle is not our way." Kirrahe paced back and forth in front of his men, his words strong and brave.

"Think of our heroes; the Silent Step, who defeated a nation with a single shot. Or the Ever Alert, who kept armies at bay with hidden facts. These giants do not seem to give us solace here, but they are not all that we are. Before the network, there was the fleet." He stood and faced his men, his speech coming to an end

"Before diplomacy, there were soldiers! Our influence stopped the Rachni, but before that we held the line! Our influence stopped the krogan, but before that, we held the line! Our influence will stop Saren; in the battle today, we will hold the line!"

Kirrahe finished, any doubt in his men had vanished. The speech had been inspiring and they were all ready for the task. Feral even commented at the back of Shepard's group that it sounded like something his old Captain used to say and that 'these guys must take lessons'. The commander had rolled his eyes at that but he still smiled slightly before Kirrahe turned back towards him.

"Thank you for that Commander, my men and I are ready to go" he nodded forcefully.

"All right then" Shepard looked back at his team, they were raring to go as well. "Let's blow up a base"

- Shadow team, the outskirts of Saren's compound –

Shadow team had slowly been moving their way around the compound, heading for the back entrance of the base. There were several Geth outposts along the way on the route they were taking. They hadn't run into anything yet and that meant they were moving as fast as they could, Kirrahe would be running into the main Geth force soon and they'd need to sneak in as undetected as possible. Feral was leading the way, Shepard had told him to put his weapon down, he was concentrating as hard he could on listening out for any sort of Geth movement.

Feral suddenly stopped running in front of the group and knelt down into the water, he gestured in front of him and around the side of the cliff. Over the sounds of his team mate's heart beats and breathing, he'd heard the unmistakable sound of the synthetics whirring muscles. They'd finally run into the Geth force.

Shepard ordered Tali and Feral to move forward, Garrus was to try and get up as high as he could but if that was impossible, he'd just stay back and make long range shots over their heads. Shepard would be flanking around the side of the Geth and hitting them home as they concentrated on Tali and Feral. They were simple, but tried and tested methods. Shepard remembered one of his old CO's calling them the 4 Fs. Find, Fix, Flank and Finish.

Feral had found them. The rest of his squad would fix the Geth attention on themselves. He'd flank them and then finish off any of the machines still alive. This was the only way he could imagine they'd be able to talk on a possibly larger force, they still had no idea how many they were facing. His squad was ready though, and they all moved into their positions; waiting for Shepard's go.

Shepard heard Kirrahe over his comm; the Salarians were starting their attack on the main geth forces. Now was as good a time as any, the Geth looked momentarily distracted as the new data came flying in from platforms on the other side of the base.

Shepard raised his hand up so his team could see before bring it down in a fist, Tali threw an overload before the sound of Feral's rifle cutting through the air erupted. Over the hail of constant fire the crack of a sniper rifle and boom of Tali's shotguns were intermittent, the snap ambush had worked beautifully. The Geth were struggling to put down any sort of fire back on his team and Shepard made his move, jumping over cover and running along the rock faces directly to the side of the Geth forces.

There was a small building up in front of them and the Geth were trying their best to rush back to it, Shepard was in a perfect position to start putting down even more fire on the synthetics, cutting them down from the side. They'd never seen him moving as the rest of his squad was causing them enough issues. Feral and Tali were systematically advancing, moving one by one as they gave each other covering fire. Garrus' sniper shots barrelling over their heads at anything that even attempting to come out of cover.

The fire fight progressed quickly, the systematic moving and firing of Shepard and the two techs had pushed the Geth back and up onto upper level of the building behind them. Most of the Geth were cut down as the retreated by fire from both Shepard and Feral's rifles. A few concussive shots and grenades later and the position had been cleared. Feral had led the group up the diagonal walkway and he ran straight up to a terminal when all the machines were dead.

"Ooooo this looks important" Feral started tapping away at the terminal, Shepard signalled for Garrus to catch up to them as Tali stood next to Feral. The two techs talking about what was on the terminal. "So if I do this…." Feral hit a button and the humming of the building died out.

"We knock out Geth communication and triangulation frequencies" Tali finished "They'll miss those Shepard"

Shepard smiled at the two "Good job now let's see if we can shut anything else down for Kirrahe" Feral and Tali nodded and picked their weapons back up. As soon as Garrus was back up with the main group. Shepard led them out of the watchtower and down the metal platform. More Geth were sure to be ahead and they needed to get a move on.

The next watchtower had been a little more intense, amongst the usual Geth platforms. There had been a destroyer and a krogan mixed in with them. The destroyer had been easier than usual to deal with, Tali and Feral had grabbed some intel from the terminal and had quickly put it to good use. They'd managed to write a program on the field that sabotaged geth programming briefly, Shepard couldn't believe the speed at which the two had worked. Feral was good with software and Tali was the geth expert. Watching the destroyer go down after rampaging through its own allies had been a welcome sight.

The krogan was still an issue though and it was proving annoying, it had a heavy machine gun and not even Feral was risking poking his head up at the heavy rate of fire coming down from it. None of the team could get out of cover for long enough. Though Shepard suddenly heard Feral shouting towards Garrus and pointing towards the top of the watch tower.

Moments later a loud crack rang out, Shepard couldn't figure out what they were doing but his question was quickly answered. The large satellite array sitting on top of the tower came crashing down onto the Krogan, it wasn't killed but it certainly wasn't moving. A second shot from Garrus finally finished off the annoying reptile. The squad sat in cover in total silence for a while.

"….I can't believe that actually worked" Feral quietly said staring in quiet amazement at the scene.

Slowly the team stood up and started moving towards the watch tower, keeping a watchful eye out for anything in hiding. Feral was still staying quiet until finally "Huh…..turns out that satellite was important too. Two birds with one stone" he chuckled out from behind his recon hood. He then looked up into the air, scanning around. "Get down everyone" he quickly ran under the lip of the watchtower. The rest of the squad joined him as a group of rocket drones flew over them.

"What's the bet that they're giving Kirrahe some grief?" Garrus clicked out as he followed them away down the scope of his rifle "Probably some kind of refuelling station over there as well"

Shepard followed the noise as they disappeared off to the south. "Then we head that way, take them out and then circle around to the main base again" the group just nodded as they quickly made their way in the direction of the drones.

They'd moved quickly along the walkway, luckily the Geth were clearly distracted with the Salarians and they hadn't encountered anymore resistance. The team was still moving along nicely with no injuries as of yet and occasionally he could hear Ashley's voice come resounding over the radio, so she was still ok as well. They were all glad to hear her voice as they ran as fast as they could towards the rocket drones position.

The team stopped just around the corner, staying out of sight of the flying platforms. They had a nice big target to aim for, the two giant fuel tanks on the platform. Shepard just pointed at them, Garrus and Feral would put as many rounds into them as soon as they can. The two got into position before the commander nodded, both of them strafed around the corner. Putting well placed shots straight into the metal tanks before they erupted into a giant fireball which consumed the rocket drones, destroying the platform and leaving a large fire in its wake.

"They might notice the smoke eventually" Garrus called over to the commander who just nodded. The team quickly rushing back towards the previous watch tower, they needed to be gone if anything came to check on the explosion. From that watch tower they could move towards the base and finding a way in.

Getting to the bases entrance was proving difficult, Krogan were outside the doors and Geth shields were up all around the walls. Shadow was struggling to get any hits on the Krogan and if they did, they had regenerated before they could be permanently put down, ducking behind the walls and geth shields. Pot shots and sustained fire were being put out by both sides, the geth platforms had been wiped out in the crossfire. Saren's krogan clearly didn't care for the Geth enough to attempt to miss them.

Feral and Tali were the closest to the enemy position but they were stuck, Tali wasn't close enough for her shotgun to be really effective. Shepard and Feral were talking over their short wave radios, trying to come up with an idea. Garrus was sitting up on a ridge behind them, he could pin the Krogan down but he wasn't able to kill them outright. Finally Feral sighed as he put his hand back onto his rifle.

"Ok Tali listen up, Shepard and Garrus are going to try and pin the krogan down but I need to get closer. I'm the only one who can take the fire and get into a forward position. As I run throw whatever you can their way, anything to distract them." Feral started breathing deeply, getting himself ready for his dash along the bridge. Tali was about to talk before he continued "I'm really really sorry to ask this….but can I borrow your shotgun?"

Shepard could only watch as Feral sprinted up the cause way as fast as he could, the man could definitely shift himself when he wanted to. The strength in his legs being shown off as he moved as fast as he could, his shields were taking some serious flak though and despite the best efforts from the rest of the squad. He watched a round fly into the man's knee, knocking him down as another round went through his abdomen.

Feral snarled in pain, dragging himself as fast as he could behind cover. Luckily he had made it far enough before being hit, the knee wasn't too much of a problem that'd heal fast. The bullet too his abdomen could be more of a problem, reaching back behind him he could feel the exit wound. Panting as he sat with his back to the wall he smiled behind his recon hood, he could already feel the wound stitching itself closed.

He couldn't move yet but he was in place, a few more minutes and he'd be ready to go. He checked over Tali's shotgun, the weapon was ready to go. Tali certainly took care of it and he promised to return it in one piece. He suddenly noticed that the sunlight had vanished, looking up he saw one of the Krogan looking back down at him.

Shepard couldn't help but wince when the boom rang out, the Krogan's body flopping onto its back. Most of its head was missing and Feral was sprayed in the reptile's blood, the short range attack with Tali's shotgun had blown the enemy's head to pieces. He heard Tali groan loudly and complain that it'd take ages for her to clean the mess of her shotgun, but Shepard could tell she was glad Feral was ok. If it weren't for the fact Krogan were sluggish at the best of times, that may very well have been Feral's blood.

Feral was wiping the blood of his hood's lenses, before he quickly started to put pressure on his knee. It was good to go again, cocking the shotgun and readying it for another shot. He took another deep breath and quickly rolled to his feet, moaning as his stomach burnt in agony. The remaining Krogan was right in front of him and again Feral was faster to the punch. Shot after shot hit the reptile as Feral stepped forward, eventually a round went straight through its shields and the rapid fire shelling tore the soldier to bits.

Feral just sighed and gripping his side, letting the shotgun drop down against his thigh. "Ok….they're dead" he called back, limping slightly as he realised his knee still hurt a little bit. He could hear Shepard and Tali coming up the walkway behind him, turning to face them and holding up the shotgun so Tali could take it back. "Sorry about the blood…..some of its mine though if that makes it any better" he smirked as they swapped their weapons around.

"Bosh'tet" Tali just said before she walked off towards the main door 'Of course that's not better' she sighed as she moved towards one of the door's panels, Feral had gotten hurt again and his blood was on her weapon. How could that be better than the enemy's blood?

She was about to start opening the door before Garrus' voice came through the radio "Shepard, there's another way in. Looks like some sort of maintenance hatch, might be a better option" the turian was panting, he had a way to run to catch up with them all. Shadow team would wait for him to catch up before moving to the alternate entrance. Feral took the time to lean against a wall, letting his internal injuries heal.

Tali watched as the man held his side, she'd seen him get hit and go down during his charge up the walkway. Again his actions had caused him to get hurt and pushed the squad further towards their objective. He'd been shot twice and she could see he was in pain, her face dropping sadly as she realised this is probably what Feral was going to go through for the rest of his life. He'd always be getting hurt instead of those around him because he could take it.

She sighed again as Garrus finally caught up with them. Feral, who was finally walking normally again, quickly ran up to join them. Shepard asked if he was good to go and the super soldier nodded, a smile visible even behind his recon hood.

"Ok then lead the way Garrus" Shepard just said to the sniper

"Wait…Feral gets to rest? Don't I get a break?" Garrus just groaned as Feral patted him on the back, hard.

"Yh well maybe next time you can run into the Krogans Garrus…and get shot…twice" Feral held up two fingers to the turian. The gesture was innocent enough to anyone but a British man and Shepard rolled his eyes as Feral took advantage of that fact.

Garrus just accepted that, Feral had only patted him on the back but he could already feel that it was going to be sore in the morning. He just nodded off to the side and lead Shadow team down underneath the platform they were standing on. The maintenance hatch was clearly visible to the team now and Tali jogged forward, setting her weapon down and worked on opening the hatch.

The door was quickly open and Shepard called for Tali and Feral to head in first. He and Garrus would be a minute behind them to make sure nothing was creeping up on the two. Feral jogged up to Tali and the two slowly started making their way into the base.

The two crept forward slowly, checking all of their angles as they moved swiftly but silently down the hatch. Feral used the opportunity of them being alone to start talking to the quarian.

"Is everything ok Tali?" he whispered over as the two moved close together "You've been….a little on edge recently"

"We are infiltrating Saren's base of operations Feral, aren't you on edge?" Tali hissed back quietly at him, they kept moving as quickly as they could. Weapons raised at all times.

"Well you know me, I'm always on edge" came the sarcastic reply "No seriously Tali, you've been acting weird since this morning. Are you sure you're ok?" he sounded worried

Tali went quiet at that, Feral had noticed she was acting weird around him. Her heart started pounding in her chest and she hoped Feral wasn't concentrating on hearing, she was scared he was going to start digging more and that she'd say something stupid. "Feral….I just have a lot on my mind that's all. This mission is huge and I guess it's just getting to me" Tali finally whispered out, half lying to the man.

To her surprise she just felt his hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently. "Tali if you ever need to talk, you know I'm here for you too" she could see him smiling behind his hood. It was always weird to see him wearing a helmet, it was one of the few times where she'd have to guess his facial expressions. 'Keelah if only you were a quarian…' instantly her face started burning up. "Thanks" she managed to squeak out before she moved on ahead.

Feral just stood there as he watched her move ahead "….you're welcome" he sighed as he went to catch up. What was on her mind and just how bad could it possibly be to make her this way? He shook his head, now wasn't the time. She was still kicking ass and he could carry on protecting her, no need to worry yet. 'I'll just talk to her again after the mission'

The two made their way down the tunnel until it opened up into a large room, off to the side was a raised platform with another door and terminal. Feral replaced his weapon and ran ahead, whatever the terminal was the sooner he was on it the better.

Tali slowly worked her way up to him, normally she would've ran next to the man and had a little race to the computer but…right now her head was spinning 'I can't believe I thought that! I can't believe I wished he was quarian' she was mentally sighing, when she had tried to find work before running into Saren's geth she had something similar.

"_I'm sorry we're not hiring Quarians, you're clearly capable but we just can't risk to have you work here. It's a shame….if only you were human or asari…" _

Feral had never treated her differently for being a quarian and here she was, wishing the man had been a quarian. 'Why did I think that? He's perfect the way he is' she mentally sighed again. She could see him up ahead working on the terminal. She smiled as she looked at him, he'd pulled his recon hood off to work and his hair was fuzzed up because of it. '…..if only I were human….'

Feral was typing at the console, his recon hood shoved into one of his pockets. He hated working with the red lenses in the way and at the moment he could take it off without worry of being shot. Shepard and Garrus had finally emerged from the tunnel as well. 'Good, nothing ugly coming up behind us' he smirked as he worked 'well…except Garrus' he watched the turian run along before snapping back to the computer screen.

"Feral" Shepard called over from the walkway as they stepped towards the two, Tali was standing next to the door and Feral looking at the screen "What do you have for us?"

Feral looked over his shoulder, blowing a strand of hair out of his vision before continuing "Well obviously I can open that door from here" he pointed at the door "But…I also have control of the bases alarms. So I can disable them which will give us a quiet entry into the base….obviously." Feral then turned "But we have two more options as well. Option 1 I set off the alarms on the other side of the base to us and Option 2 I can set off the alarms at our side of the base"

"Wait what? Why would we set the alarms off out our side?" Garrus almost shouted at the man before Shepard answered for him

"If we set off the alarms near us, the Geth will come to us and that'll take pressure off Kirrahe's men. The other option will take pressure off of us and put it all on Kirrahe. We'll have an easy route through but Kirrahe will probably get overrun" he slowly voiced the tech's reasoning

"Oh…." it actually made sense to Garrus "Wait how did you come up with that Feral?"

Feral just smirked "Believe it or not Garrus this is not the first base of operations I've ever infiltrated" he turned back towards the computer "Admittedly the last one wasn't a krogan breeding facility run by a mad, evil, rogue Spectre hell bent on killing us all…..just saying. So commander what's the call?" He quickly moved back to the matter at hand, ready to initiate whatever the commander chose.

"Just disable the alarms Feral, we can handle whatever is out there. Kirrahe doesn't need to have more Geth to deal with and we can't risk being discovered as the actual threat." Shepard replied to the man, watching as he typed away whilst the commander talked.

"And behind door number 1" Feral hit a few more keys before the door swung open "you have your fabulous prize of sweet fuck all" he spun around and grinned "no alarms, nothing expecting us and a whole base all to ourselves" he then grabbed his recon hood and pulled it back over his head. His voice becoming slightly synthesised. "Let's blow this place back to hell"

Shadow team pressed deeper into the facility and what they were uncovering along the way was unsettling. Salarian soldiers had been experimented on, indoctrinated to Saren's will much like Benezia and her Asari had been. But they had far less control, babbling insanely as the team walked past the containers. Feral was being especially quiet and with his recon hood in the way it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

"Are you ok Feral?" Shepard was worried, and silently so was Tali. They both knew what Feral had been through and this place must have reminded him of the very many Cerberus bases he'd been moved to and from.

"Yeah…just….yeah I'm fine" Feral managed to get out, he felt bad for these Salarians. They'd been captured on a mission just like he had, but they must have known help was coming. Feral never knew if he was ever going to be free and yet he'd kept his mind, it was the one thing no one had ever taken from him. These Salarians had been driven insane by Saren, as he remained quiet his blood boiled. 'Saren has to die'

The further they pushed into the base the more and more angry Feral was getting, he was trying to keep it boiled down. Aim it at the enemy and make them pay. As they pressed on not only had they run into more Geth and Krogan, but indoctrinated STG Salarians. The entire team's emotions were running high. They knew Saren had indoctrinated almost all of his organic forces, but they never expected him being capable of breaking the STG teams.

Feral was just squeezing his rifle tighter and tighter in his hands, he'd noticed the pistol grip had cracked slightly in his hand. 'Calm down, calm down' he was telling himself over and over again. His silent mental mantra was finally silenced as shadow team stepped through the doors and into a large lab area. Scattered around were containment units, husks, Krogans and Salarians were locked in stasis. This was beyond anything Feral had ever seen, the scale was ginormous in comparison to his ordeal. At the end of the laboratory was a lone Krogan, by the style of his clothing he was a scientist.

That was the final nail in the coffin for Feral, he saw red. How many more times would he discover a species experimenting on itself? How many more would sell their own people in the name of science. He just started walking forward, ignoring the sound of Shepard calling for him to stop behind him. He holstered his rifle and drew out his pistol and knife, well placed shots, stabs and punches dispatched any husk that got close enough to the angry super soldier.

The Krogan started to charge towards Feral, a couple of husks had gotten lucky, scratches on his armour, arms and face. The wounds to his skin quickly sealed up and as the Krogan ran towards the human.

Shepard just watched as he saw Feral through his weapons off to the side and crouch down low. The forward momentum of the Krogan had thrown Feral backwards, but the man had practically cut the reptile in half. Ducking down lower than the scientist and driving his shoulders into his stomach before letting himself be pushed back, spinning them around in the air so Feral landed on top of him. It had reminded him of a rugby tackle, well timed and well placed. The speed and strength of the krogan had been nullified by his positioning.

What happened next though, no one expected. Feral just started punching at the scientist. Wildly throwing blow after blow into the krogans head, the victims kinetic shields quickly broke at the force but Feral didn't let up for one second. He just kept punching, practically roaring as he brought both of his hands over his head and brought them crashing down into the faceplate of the Krogan. The tough outer layer just shattered under the force and the reptile convulsed before it finally died.

The room just went quiet, the humming of machines was the only noise other than Feral panting heavily as he stepped away from the dead scientist. He pulled off his recon hood and just threw it away before he fell to his knees. He was quickly calming down but he could see he had shocked the entire team. One deep breath later he stood back up, retrieving his pistol and knife.

"Sorry about that…this place reminds me…..well….I don't think I need to say what it reminds me of" Feral sighed, his eyes were downcast as he pulled the hood back over his head. "I'm ok now commander, sorry for losing my cool like that" his voice wasn't back to normal but it was definitely calmer.

Shepard finally spoke up "Its ok Feral, we all get it. As long as you're not going to freak out and start killing everything in sight" he smirked, hoping that Feral would respond like he normally would.

A small sigh of relief left Tali's lips as she heard Feral laugh quietly at Shepard's comment. She slowly stepped towards the man and held up her shotgun "Are you sure you needed this earlier? You did a pretty good job without it" she just walked past Feral and stepped towards the locked door at the end of the hall. She was happy he was back to normal again, and her worries had briefly subsided.

Feral smiled at her words before laughing a little bit louder "Hey I like using your shotgun, makes me feel as half as tough as you are" he quickly followed after her, his eyes briefly glancing down. 'Ignore the hips, ignore the hips, ignore the hips' he rolled his eyes at himself before he caught up and helped Tali crack the door open.

Shepard and Garrus just looked at each other before the walked slowly after them. "If Feral and Tali could have children I think the galaxy would have a worse threat to peace than the Krogan Shepard, we need to keep an eye on those two" Garrus stated seriously before Shepard just laughed, the two quickly running up to the two techs as they got the door open.

Finally Shadow squad was back outside, the base had walkways over the sea and the fresh air was welcome compared to the stench inside the labs. There was little to no resistance as they hopped across the metal walkways. They finally came to another building, the draw bridge opposite it lead towards the gun but it was up. And without an obvious way to drop it they'd have to check inside for a way to release it.

Stepping into yet another building, the immediate scan of the room presented no threats. But the banging against a table made them raise their weapons as a terrified Asari popped up from underneath it.

"Don't shoot!" the Asari scientist shouted at the heavily armed group, Shepard hoped Feral had dealt fully with his 'scientist' obsession and clearly the man had. He lowered his weapon along with everyone else.

"Thank you, I'm Rana" the Asari carefully said

"Everything we've encountered in this base so far has been trying to kill us, why are you here?" Shepard said, it was odd to see an unarmed Asari

"I'm just a nurse, I've been helping Saren study indoctrination. It has something to do with that ship of his, Sovereign. It emits this really weird signal, it's almost undetectable but it's there. We've seen its effects." She quickly admitted

Feral growled loudly "You mean you've seen them on those Salarians in cages?" he stepped forward but Shepard stopped him.

"Those people had lives and you've helped turn them into mindless slaves, give me one good reason I should let you go" Shepard ordered

"Like I said I'm just a nurse, indoctrination affects everyone here. My first test subject was the man I took over from and eventually Saren will want to dissect my brain too. This job isn't worth dying over" she pleaded, the sob story hadn't won any of the people over "Look….I can open this elevator for you, it leads to Saren's private office" The asari quickly ran over and typed into the panel "There….can I go please?"

"Get out of here, we're setting up a bomb and blowing this place to hell." Shepard finally stated, he was giving the Asari a fighting chance. She had helped them into Saren's private office and at this point they needed anything they could get their hands on.

"You can't….but how will I get…." The asari stumbled before finally just running past the group and down one the walkway.

Feral just snorted "You enjoyed that a little bit didn't you Shepard?"

Shepard just smiled back at the man "Well…I can't lie to you can I?" he stepped off before Feral had a time to quip back. The entire squad shuffled into an elevator, Shepard ordering Tali to smack Feral for him if he started to hit his head on the wall.

"Gladly" came the purr from the quarian as she stared up at Feral, who just looked back at her through his lenses before standing perfectly still.

"Don't worry Feral, if the elevator stops I'll hit your head against the panel myself" Garrus piped up as they moved down, Feral just sighed.

'I knew I'd regret telling that story'

Once the elevator reached the bottom of its shaft, the team stepped out and entered Saren's private room. Shepard, Tali and Kaidan all looked in shock at the protean beacon sitting at the front of the room slowly stepping down the stairs towards it. Feral had no idea what the thing was, so he stayed on the upper level resting his elbows on the railing as he looked down over them.

"…..seeing as you guys seem to recognise that….what is it?" Feral just threw it out there, he still had no idea

Tali turned to look up at him "It's a Prothean beacon Feral, it's what gave Shepard his visions." Feral just looked up at the device and nodded in understanding

"But this one is intact…..it could be the final piece of the puzzle we need" Shepard said as he tentatively stepped towards it.

It was Feral's turn to have his eyes bolt wide open as he watched the Commander get yanked into the air, it looked like he was having some sort of seizure. 'Ok things I never want to do, get mind fucked by a Prothean beacon' Kaidan and Tali didn't seem shocked by what was happening so he guessed it must have been normal. Still it looked…awkward especially from his vantage point.

Eventually Shepard just slumped back down to the ground and the moment he did, the consoles around Feral turned on. Making the man step back as a large red squid shaped hologram appeared before them. 'That looks like…..no it can't be'

"You are not Saren" boomed the synthetic voice, its very frequency made the room vibrate

Tali had bolted up the stairs when she had seen the activity quickly joining Feral "What is that? A VI?" she asked as Feral looked at her and shrugged. Garrus and Shepard eventually came up the stairs as well, Shepard stepping into the middle of the group.

"Rudimentary creatures of blood and flesh. You touch my mind, fumbling in ignorance, incapable of understanding" the voice boomed out again

Feral just stood wide eyed behind his hood, VIs didn't talk like that "I don't think that's a VI Tali" the two techs just looked at each other worryingly.

"There is a realm of existence so far beyond your own you can't even imagine it. I am beyond your comprehension. I am Sovereign" it finally identified itself, Saren's flagship.

"Sovereign isn't a reaper ship…it's an actual reaper" Shepard voiced everyone's thoughts, none of them truly knew what to think in the face of this development. Sovereign was gigantic and alive.

Sovereign replied to Shepard this time, finally acknowledging the commander "Reaper? A label created by the Protheans to give voice to their destruction. In the end what they chose to call us is irrelevant, we simply are"

"If these things wiped out the Protheans 50,000 years ago…how long have they been around for? Machines this advanced…..they could last forever Shepard" even Feral sounded worried, how the hell were they going to beat this thing?

"Organic life is nothing but a mutation, an accident. Your lives are measured in years and decades, you wither and die. We are eternal, the pinnacle of evolution and existence, before us. You are nothing" Sovereign voiced, it was like a pre-recorded message. "You're extinction is inevitable, we are the end of everything"

Shepard suddenly took a step forward "Whatever your plan is, it won't work. I'll make sure of that" he glared at the hologram, looking straight into the circular shape on its main body.

"Confidence born of ignorance, the cycle cannot be broken"

Garrus just shook his head "That….that doesn't sound good."

Sovereign then kept talking, Shadow squads worst fears were all confirmed. The Reapers had been around for millennia maybe even longer and they had been wiping out organic life systematically for that entire time. Then an even bigger revelation, the Protheans hadn't created the Citadel or the Mass Relays. They were all of Reaper design, made to force organic life along certain paths.

Feral barely whispered "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last" Shepard looked around at him, the quote was accurate. According to Sovereign every piece of technology that built up galactic society was Reaper and it would lead to their destruction.

Sovereign was silent for a moment "Revelation 22:13, The Bible. It is fitting"

"Thanks Feral give the Reaper ideas" Garrus glared at him, Feral just shrugged. Clearly an ancient being capable of galactic devastation didn't need any more ideas.

"It doesn't matter what you are!" Shepard shouted again "In the end you're just a machine, and machines can be broken. We can beat you!"

"Your words are as empty as your future. I am the vanguard of your destruction. This exchange is over" the room erupted as the windows exploded, shaking the entire room at the force. Feral managed to catch Tali before she tripped over, grabbing onto the rail and tugging her tightly into him. He let her go as soon as the room stopped spinning, she was grateful for the help but it really didn't help her. She was desperate to apologize to him and every single time he stopped her falling over she was wrapped in his strong arms and pushed against the very chest she was trying to forget about.

She was about to say something to Feral but she was cut off by the sound of Joker

"Commander I don't know what you did but that ship Sovereign. It just made a U-turn that would cut must Alliance vessels in half. It's coming straight towards the base. May I suggest you hurry up so we can blow this place up before it gets here?" Joker chimed over the radio

"Roger that Joker" Shepard turned to the rest of his team "Ok double time it, we need to take out that AA tower and get the Normandy landed" the entire squad just bolted straight for the elevator, not even giving a yes. They had to move, Sovereign was coming and that only meant a hell of a lot more Geth and possibly even Saren himself.

They worked their way up the elevator as quickly as possible, Feral taking the time to comment that moments like this are when stairs are better, he could run up them faster. That made Shepard groan and hit his head on the panel. He really didn't need it to stop and if Feral believed in it then it was good enough for him right now. When they reached the top Feral just couldn't stop laughing as both he and the commander charged out of the elevator. Leaving a stunned Garrus and Tali who quickly shook it off and ran after the two.

The drawbridge that had blocked them earlier was folding down in front of them and 3 angry krogan were on the other side. However this time, it was a straight line path with very little cover and they had distance to their advantage. Garrus started taking well timed shots, waiting for Feral and Shepard's assault rifles to break the shields on the slowly advancing tanks. The polonium rounds of the sniper rifle leaving very little left as they entered the soft tissue of the Krogan skull.

3 dead krogan later the team were running down the walkway as fast as they can, encountering small amounts of Geth resistance in a large room with water covering the entire floor. Hoppers had filled the area and the bouncy bastards refused to sit still. The team stayed beyond cover, Tali and Feral hitting them with overloads whenever they could, making the hoppers fall into the water where Shepard and Garrus finished them off. It took time but no one had been hurt. Feral had fallen over when a hopper had bounced off him at one point, he wasn't injured but he was soaking wet.

The team moved on again, moving as quickly as possible. The Geth resistance was pathetic, the only issue was the occasional Krogan or Juggernaut and if they got too close to Feral it was over before it began. Tali or Feral himself would knock the shields out before the super human punched the enemy until it stopped moving. Eventually Shadow squad made it to their AA tower, just receiving word that Kirrahe and Ashley had taken out theirs.

At last, Feral had disconnected the AA tower and the gun was down. The team moved up into the elevator and slowly took it up to the top. Once they were there, they would have to destroy any resistance in the landing zone before the Normandy could land and the nuclear bomb could be deployed. Again the resistance had been minimal and before long Shadow team was watching the Normandy surge overhead before landing perfectly at the end of the landing zone.

Feral had wolf whistled as it had passed overhead "Ok credit where credit is due, that was awesome" he snickered as Garrus just rolled his eyes

"Joker doesn't need any more encouragement Feral, especially after Therum" Garrus grumbled, Feral just put his hands up in defence

"I still haven't heard that story Garrus, hey maybe if I follow you around and you ask you tell me it repeatedly you'd bite" Feral grinned, his recon hood was off again and this time his hair was soaking wet.

Shadow squad just watch happily as Kaidan and Wrex stepped off the Normandy carrying the bomb. It meant their time in the base was going to be over shortly. Liara also jumped off the Normandy and walked up to Shepard and the two started talking, both Garrus and Feral noticed the woman's small blush.

Feral just looked at the turian after he'd been nudged in the ribs "Feral can you hear what they are saying?"

"Of course I can Garrus and I'd love to tell you I really would but Tali is standing behind you" Feral just smiled nicely to the turian "I think she wants me to tell you to mind your own business" turning around to face the Quarian who was just glaring at Garrus "isn't that right Tali?"

Garrus just laughed as he walked off, mumbling something about Feral and the fact he didn't even have ears. Tali just looked at Feral "Can you really hear what they are saying?"

"Hmm? Oh! oh no of course I can't. If I concentrated sure but….I'm not going to eavesdrop. I'm pretty sure I know what they are talking about anyway" Feral just looked back at the two, Shepard and Liara were both smiling happily as they talked.

Tali just watched the human and the asari. Sighing mentally, human and asari was easy and the two species had been involved romantically for years now. She'd never heard of a human-quarian relationship, it'd just be too difficult. It was at that moment Tali decided that she'd apologize and stop her silliness, no matter how badly she didn't want to.

Suddenly a thud and then a loud voice drew their attention "Ok Shepard, the bomb's in place. The biotic just needs to arm it" Shepard nodded and patted Liara's shoulder before walking to the side. He was going to radio Ashley to come in and get to the extraction point.

Everyone else just went back to their own business again, Kaidan was arming the bomb and Ashley would be coming soon. Feral was looking at Tali, she was rubbing her hands again. He'd quickly noticed that she always did that whenever she was worried about something. "Tali?"

The woman looked up at him "Y-yes Feral?" the suddenness of her name being called and the worried look on Feral's face had shocked her.

"Are you absolutely sure that all this" he gestured to her hands "is just the mission? Is there anything else I can help you with?" Feral stepped closer, trying to get a gauge on her eyes. His enhanced vision couldn't see through the visor but it could make out the glowing shape of her eyes more easily.

Tali's face starting burning up again at the proximity "Why? Wh-what could I possibly have to talk about? I'm fine really Feral there's nothing wrong with me at all and…Keelah is it hot here or is it just me?" Tali just babbled out rapidly, leaving Feral blinking as he tried to decipher.

"Erm….ok…well if yo-" he was cut off by Shepard shouting

"Everybody who isn't arming that bomb get your weapons and follow me! Ashley needs help!" The entire team except Kaidan sprang into action, grabbing their weapons and rushing after the commander as the 7 strong unit barrelled towards the second AA tower. The Normandy had taken off again to avoid being detected, it'd be back whenever the all clear was given and the bomb was ready.

Shepard's team had quickly cut through the forces in their way, now that he had Liara and Wrex back they could do a lot more tactically. Both Feral and Wrex acted as tanks, drawing fire and using their biotic and tech skills whenever they could. Shepard and Garrus were the main fire team, shooting and anything left moving by the two tanks. Tali and Liara were their support squad, heavy biotic attacks and technical powers fine-tuned for the geth kept everything at bay.

They quickly made their way towards Ashley's position until suddenly an explosion behind them erupted and Kaidan's voice came over the radio.

"Commander I'm pinned down! The Geth came out of nowhere!" Kaidan was shouting over rapid gunfire, he was in trouble and the nuclear bomb hadn't been armed. Shepard couldn't believe what he was hearing, he didn't have time to send two teams in both directions. Ashley was pinned down at the AA tower and now Kaidan was under fire with the nuclear bomb. He had to make a choice.

"Commander, you need to go back and get that bomb armed" Ashley's voice came over the coms calmly "If the Lt is killed and that bomb doesn't go off then all of this will have been in vain, you have to go back for Alenko" the team could hear rounds going off and hitting the walls around her.

Shepard sighed, she was right. Kaidan was arguing back but Ashley was right, if that bomb didn't detonate. All of this mission would have been pointless, the sacrifices of the salarian STG team wasted. He rubbed his forehead before finally saying "Ashley is right….we go back for Kaidan and the bomb"

"Shepard you can't be serious…" Feral suddenly spoke up, everyone turning around to face him "The bomb isn't armed yet we can still make it!" the thought of losing a team mate again was not acceptable in Feral's mind. They weren't even going to try to save Ashley.

"Feral If I split up the team, I risk losing more than just Ashley's life. I don't like it either but I need everyone I possibly can. We cannot make it as a unit Feral, not to save both of them" Shepard said as he gestured for everyone to make their way back to the bombsite.

Feral just stood there looking at the ground, he'd already lost an entire unit to the men who made him what he was. "Then don't send the unit Shepard, just send me" he turned around as he shouted the words.

Shepard stopped and turned around "Are you not listening to me? We don't have time!"

"I can make it! I can! This is what I was made for Shepard. I'm one person, I can go light and fast. Hit them and grab her and run" Feral responded "Shepard you have to let me try" his voice was resolute, he believed he could do it. Shepard could see the determination in his eyes, so far Feral had been capable of everything he'd said he was capable of…why stop believing him now?

"Feral you have 10 minutes, no matter what you better be back at the landing site by then" Shepard finally said. Feral just nodded and bolted off around the corner, sprinting as fast as he could towards Ashley's position. He was close, the AA tower was just around the corner.

Tali just watched in horror as Feral darted off, how could he leave? How could he leave her now? She just shook her head slightly as she stared into the space where Feral used to be, it wasn't until Shepard grabbed her by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes.

"He will come back Tali, don't worry about him. You know he'll come back because he has you to come back to" Shepard said quietly, but his eyes were deadly serious. Tali's eyes were wide in shock, how did Shepard know she cared about him? She'd never told anyone…unless….but that was impossible. There was no way Feral felt the same. But Shepard's words had hit home, Feral would come back.

Feral was panting hard, he was running faster than he ever had before. Sliding over cover and never losing his momentum, the few Geth platforms that had been in his way had suddenly gone flying into a wall or over the edge of the base as the super soldier juggernauted through like a Krogan. He had less mass than a Krogan, but because of that he was a lot faster. It was minutes before Feral started hearing the gunfire ahead, he was incredibly close.

He hit the door panel and was greeted by the sight of the last remaining STG members behind cover next to the wall. They had been trying to reach Ashley as well, who was pinned down by a constant barrage of rifle, rocket and plasma fire. The situation was bad, not only were destroyers on the scene but a prime had showed up. Kirrahe was sitting down behind a crate, he had been ordering his troops to put down covering fire so they could make their way to Ash. The several dead Salarians between him and her showed they hadn't been successful.

"Hey Captain, we need to hurry right now. That bomb is going off and we have….7 minutes to get Ashley and get back to the Normandy for extraction" Feral said quickly, he was out of breath but he was managing

"We've been trying to reach her, but we can't get across the line of fire." Kirrahe stated "That Geth Prime is just waiting for someone to stick their head out and the moment they do….well you can see the result."

"Well..it's a good thing you've got me now huh?" Feral grinned "tell your men to put everything they can on those Geth, I can make it to Ashley no problem. Hey Ash you hear that? I'm coming for you ok?"

Feral could see Ashley look over and he just waved before a loud, angry voice shouted down his ear. "What the hell Feral? I give you the opportunity to get out of here and you come to me anyway?...Thanks" she sighed as she sat back against the crates.

"No problem, Kirrahe are you ready?" The Salarian just nodded and Feral started to run the moment the roar of gun fire started. Feral smiled, he could do this. In his mind he would have Ashley and be gone in seconds before suddenly a huge rain of fire made him stumble and scramble back into cover.

"What was that?" Feral shouted as he checked himself, no wounds. He'd been lucky.

"It's no use! We can't get enough fire down we just don't have the man power!" Kirrahe shouted back "We can't get to her, we have to pull back to the Normandy before we get overrun!"

Feral was about to protest before Ashley spoke into the radio again. "He's right Feral, you don't have a choice. You have to go now! I can hold them here until you're gone…give them hell for me will you?"

Feral just stared over at Ashley from the cover he was in, the Salarian team were already falling back towards the Normandy. He couldn't believe he'd failed and because of that Ashley was dead. He slowly raised his hand to his ear "Sure thing Ash…I'm so sorry" Feral just gritted his teeth as he turned away, shutting the door and putting an encryption over it to slow any Geth down.

Back at the Normandy, Shepard was waiting apprehensively. The clock was ticking and the entire squad were standing on the Normandy's open cargo hold.'2 minutes until we have to go….c'mon Feral' Suddenly Tali shouted out, the Salarian STG were bursting around the corner and heading straight for the Normandy. Everyone felt a sigh of relief hit them, Feral had done it. God knows how but he had done it.

Everyone was pulling the STG members on board when Feral came bolting around the corner….alone. He ran all the way to the Normandy and jumped onto the cargo bay door where he collapsed from exhaustion, he was panting heavily as he laid back on the metal. Hitting his head on the floor before he was pulled to his feet by Garrus and Kaidan.

Shepard couldn't believe it, the look on the super soldiers face was hidden by his recon hood, but he could tell Feral wasn't taking this well. Shepard couldn't even begin to imagine what had happened as he rose his hand "Joker, get us out of here"

_Ashley Williams, Born 2158 Died 2183. She was an Alliance marine from an Alliance family. She served with pride and honour and was an example to all of those around her. She was killed in action of the surface of Virmire assisting in the destruction of Saren Arterius' base of Operations. Her sacrifice saved the lives of many other men and women. We will never forget her. Her fighting spirit lives on in the lives she saved. _ – Memorial to Ashley Williams.


	13. A Friend Lost and Reciprocation

Silence, the Normandy was in total silence as it flew away from Virmire. Shepard and his squad along with Kirrahe and his survivors were all in the cargo bay of the ship. It had been a few minutes since they took off, they had felt the detonation just as they were leaving the atmosphere of Virmire.

Feral was slumped down next a crate, his head in one of his hands and the recon hood hanging limply in his grip. The rest of Shepard's team wasn't fairing any better, no one knew what to do or what to say. They just sat in silence, mourning in their own way. Until finally Kaidan spoke up his voice a mixture of sadness and anger.

"What the hell happened down there?" his question was directed towards Feral, who just let his arms rest on his knees and pushed his head back against the metal box.

"I couldn't reach her…." He sighed, shaking his head as he pushed a hand into his eye. "I tried but I couldn't get to her"

Kaidan suddenly lunged forward and picked the man up by the sides of his armour "What do you mean you couldn't reach her? Shepard told me that you sure you could do it!" he shouted at Feral, who just proceeded to look down at the floor.

Feral closed his eyes and just breathed deeply "I tried Kaidan…..there was nothing I could do without getting myself killed as well" he was trying to justify leaving her, in any way he could.

Suddenly Feral felt a fist hit the side of his cheek, it sent him reeling back into the crate and knocked it over. "So you just gave up? Is that is?" Kaidan was shouting louder and louder, he'd been so relieved to hear Feral was going after Ashley. Knowing that not even Feral had could have made a difference….they should've gone after her. He should've stopped them and sent them off to Ash.

Shepard and Garrus grabbed the man and pulled him back away from Feral who just lay on the ground next to the crate, wiping his lip clean with the side of his hand. He didn't even bother getting up until Tali came over and gently pulled him onto his feet. His eyes had always been able to clearly voice his emotions for him, and seeing his eyes this time was heart breaking. She'd seen them before when he told her all about the failed mission that cost his team mates their lives.

Failure. Feral had tried so hard and he still couldn't save Ashley. His eyes were downcast and his face was blank. Shepard and Garrus had dragged Kaidan off to help him calm down. The cargo bay was once again returned to silence as the two men were separated. Shepard sighed, he really didn't want to ask this next question but he had to know.

"Feral…what actually happened?" he asked quietly

Feral just looked up at the Commander, Tali was still at his side with a single hand on his shoulder. He sighed and looked down, gritting his teeth as the right words just couldn't come to mind. He remembered it all in perfect detail, why couldn't he just say it? His final words to Ashley were ringing through his head

'I'm so sorry' he could do so much, but he couldn't save Ashley's life. He was about to speak until a voice started before him.

"I believe I can answer for him Commander" Kirrahe had stepped forward; the rest of his team was huddled into one corner. So few of them had survived, Shepard just nodded and Feral looked down again, he wished he didn't have to hear this all again.

Kirrahe told Shepard exactly what had happened. Ashley had been with a small group of his STG members taking down the AA gun. The moment they had they came under fire from the Geth, at first it had been manageable, but the reinforcements just kept on coming. It made sense; Saren himself had told Shepard the Geth believed the Salarians were the real threat. Eventually Ashley's team had all been killed except her, and she was pinned behind small amounts of cover.

They had been trying to reach her, over and over the main team would open fire with everything they had and try to manoeuvre towards Ashley so she could make a break for the door they were near. But there were just too many Geth, several STG members had been killed in the rescue attempts. That was when Feral had shown up, even with the super soldier's abilities. The Geth's rate and weight of fire was just too great, he'd barely been able to poke his out before his shields went down.

Kirrahe then told Shepard how it'd been him who had called for the retreat, not Feral. Feral was the last one to the Normandy simply because he had been the last one to abandon the position. The salarians had expected to be cut down in the midst of the retreat, whatever Feral had done between leaving Ashley and running for the Normandy. It had saved all of their lives.

That was when Tali noticed Feral's eyes light up slightly, only barely though. He must not have considered that, it didn't help take away the knowledge that he couldn't save Ashley but knowing he had probably saved the lives of almost 15 STG operatives.

Shepard looked towards Feral "What did you do after the Salarians had retreated?" he watched Feral take a deep breath before he replied.

"I spoke to Ashley briefly over the short wave…..then I retreated as well. I….hacked the door and put an encryption on it. Personalised lock, the Geth would've taken ages to get through it and with Ashley giving them trouble…..it gave me time to get back" he slowly said, keeping his last words to Ashley to himself.

Shepard decided to leave it at that, whatever was left, Feral had to deal with it first. Maybe then he could find out more. "Ok listen up everyone, take some time. Get your equipment off and do whatever you need to do. I know it's a bad time but we need to debrief. We'll reconvene in the comm room in 30 minutes" Shepard just ordered, now was not the time to mourn. They could mourn when Saren and Sovereign were dead.

The squad slowly moved removing whatever equipment they had one and stuffing it into their lockers. For Tali that was pretty simple, just putting her weapons away was nowhere near as much as anyone else. Kaidan had entered the elevator with Shepard, both of their lockers were on the upper deck. She sighed as she glanced over at Ashley's locker, what were they going to do with all of her belongings? The Alliance would probably take care of that for them though.

She was about to turn to leave, the Normandy's wash facilities weren't meant for Quarians but she'd managed to fit a small sterilisation beam into the door function. She wouldn't take her suit off but it helped stay clean underneath it, she mainly just took her helmet off to wash her hair and let water run down into the suit. The suit could take care of the excess water and dry her off as well. But before she managed to do anything she saw Feral, still sitting on the crate she'd left him at. He was struggling with his armour, clearly his mind was elsewhere.

She stepped over to him and put a hand on his as he tried to undo the straps that held the pieces in place. Feral just looked up at her as she took his hand and moved it out of the way, watching the woman as she started to help him take off the layers of his armour.

"Thank you Tali….." Feral quietly said as he watched her hands at work. Tali didn't blush or smile this time, she really was just helping her friend get through this. The significance of the act wasn't lost on either of them. Even if they were only friends, even if that's all they were ever capable of being. They cared deeply for one another. They just stood together in silence as Tali took off the pieces of armour Feral couldn't manage.

- Normandy's Communication room –

The team was sitting circular room, Ash's empty seat wasn't lost on any of them. The missing presence of the strong woman was blaringly obvious. Everyone except Kaidan and Shepard were in the communications room, they were just sitting in their seats with their eyes on the ground.

Wrex finally spoke up "She died a warrior's death. She went taking that entire base with her. You should all be proud of her, not moping because she's gone." In typical Krogan fashion he was incredibly blunt, but he was still right. Again the Krogan was showing off his stoic wisdom, even if it was a little insensitive.

Tali was about to shout at Wrex for being so harsh about it but Feral spoke up before she could. "We are proud of her Wrex, but that doesn't mean we're not going to miss her. She was a damn good soldier but she was our friend first" he just spoke as he looked down. "Don't worry about us Wrex, we're all itching to get our hands on that bastard" he growled out loudly

Wrex just smiled and chuckled softly, Feral had looked up at the end of that statement and the fire in his eyes was back. Not fury, but determined. Saren was going down and everyone in the room was sharing the same sentiment. Even Liara was looking ready for the final fight, the once naïve and timid woman was getting more and more used to the combat. Losing a friend was the last straw and she was up for it more than ever.

Finally Shepard and Kaidan stepped into the room, everyone had gone from slouching to sitting upright. Shepard had to wonder what had given them this sudden determination but he could guess, it was the same thing that had gotten him back in the fight. Saren and Sovereign dead.

Shepard stepped forward and turned around in his usual spot, but he waited for Kaidan to sit down. The biotic had gone up to Feral and was offering his hand.

"I'm sorry for punching you earlier I was just…" Feral cut him off by taking his hand and shaking it firmly.

"We're good Kaidan, I understand why you did it….besides I bet it hurt you more than it hurt me" Feral smiled playfully as Kaidan went over to sit down.

"Yeah well…not all of us have metal jaws Feral" the biotic managed to smile, Ash may have been gone, but they were damn well sure her sacrifice wasn't going to be in vain.

Shepard smiled at the new found determination in the rest of his squad, they were all ready for the fight. With Liara's help maybe they could discover where Saren was ultimately heading to.

"I know we're all dealing with Ash's death in our own ways, but right now all that matters is stopping Saren." Everyone just nodded firmly in agreement "By now I've sure you've all heard about what transpired in Saren's base, what we discovered. The Prothean beacon and Sovereigns true identity. Liara I was hoping you could help me piece together the final piece of the vision." Shepard looked over at her, and the Asari smiled happily as she stood up

"Of course Shepard, I'd gladly help you" she said as she walked into the middle of the room. Feral just watched in slight surprise at what happened next. Clearly he'd missed all the other times this had happened because no one else looked shocked at the process of joining minds. He smiled inwardly at the fact he'd called this process "mind fucking" back on Virmire, the fact that he was well aware of Shepard and Liara's relationship made the situation just that more amusing to him. He just managed to stop himself from grinning when they pulled away from the event panting slightly by biting down on the inside of his cheek.

'No no no this is a serious thing, I can't think of it like that…Shepard you dog' he sat back and looked over to his side briefly. Tali must have seen him looking a little weird in his attempt not to laugh, one of her eyebrows was raised. Feral instantly straightened up and stopped what he was doing before looking forward when Liara finally spoke.

"Oh wow….all that information. Those images….Ilos. It's Ilos Shepard" she was looking wide eyed at the commander "Whatever the conduit is, it's on Ilos"

"Are you sure Liara?" Shepard asked slowly, everyone had sat forward now. If she was certain then that was their next destination.

"Yes I'd recognise it anywhere, Ilos was an important Prothean find and…." She stumbled slightly "Sorry Shepard…I guess that still takes a lot out of me"

Shepard just pulled her back so she was steady, before giving her the all clear to go to the med bay to rest up. He was just about to radio joker when the pilot's voice came through the intercom.

"Commander I've just received word from the Council, they have received the mission report and they want you back at the Citadel now" he sounded a little confused and he was joined by the rest of the team. Why did the council want to see them? And why now? They'd just found out where Saren was going and now they had to go in the other direction entirely.

Everyone returned to their posts for the journey back to the citadel, no one was entirely sure why the council wanted to see them and what they were going to say. They'd been half in favour of Shepard's actions and half against them. Feral doubted it was going to be anything good, during his talks with Shepard they'd talked about how the council seemed incredibly unwilling to help in the long term.

Feral stepped into the Normandy's engine room, a few of the crew where in there and so was Tali. He sighed, despite the few things that had happened between them on Virmire she was still more or less avoiding him. They'd barely said more than two sentences to each other since that night in the med bay. He stood in the door way for a brief second, tapping on his omni-tool. Just a little something in case she tried to run off again, they had time now and they were going to talk.

Feral stepped down towards the two engineers, luckily for him they were both close to the doors.

"Hey you two, we've got a few hours until we get to the citadel. Go get some rest, Tali and I can handle things in here until then. You must have had your work cut out for you on Virmire" He said quietly to the two, who just thanked him and quickly walked out. Feral just rolled his eyes as he smiled, give them the chance for a break and they'd jump through a ring of fire.

Slowly he walked over to Tali, she was turned away from him and she didn't even realise he was there until he spoke up.

"Hey Tali, got time to talk?" Feral just said loudly enough to grab her attention. He was worried by her reaction, she'd jumped around and looked shocked by the sudden words. There was a time she'd practically start bouncing when she heard him coming.

"Oh err….hey Feral" Tali was stammering her words out, instantly rubbing her hands as the nerves hit her "Sure…I guess…..wait where did everyone else go?" she looked at Feral, cocking her head slightly to the side.

"I gave them time off, until we hit the Citadel it's just you and me in here" Feral smirked playfully 'Gotcha now'

Tali looked down at the floor, her eyes darting from side to side before finally she started stepping towards the doors "Well in that case I should get…this…..report to…Adams! Yes I have to report to Adams" Feral just rolled his eyes at that and pulled open his omni-tool, tapping a few buttons and started to follow the Quarian quietly enough so she didn't hear him.

Tali was panicking as she stepped up to the doors but she had managed to get out of speaking to Feral, she would always have a plan in her head but then the moment she heard his voice or saw him coming. The plan just went completely wrong and the only thing that came to mind was run. She was so confused, Feral had been so kind to her this whole time. He'd complemented her and called her things she'd never been called before. But she was Quarian, she couldn't admit her feelings to him, it just wouldn't work.

She walked up to the door and tapped the holographic switch….nothing happened. She tapped it again and still nothing happened, she started hitting it more rapidly before she just sighed. 'Great last thing I need is a malfunction' she pulled up her omni-tool and started scanning the mechanism. She'd have this fixed in no time, but she froze when she saw a line of code she recognised.

Feral's line of code, it was the same encryption that had kept her busy outside the Cerberus base he'd been found in. She quickly snapped around only to find him standing at the bottom of the walkway, looking up at her.

"Yeaah….so I thought you might run and…" he started walking towards her "just a little precaution to give us all this time together" his smirk turned into a frown, he put a hand over her shoulder and onto the door. Trapping her between him and the door, leaving her nowhere to go.

"Tali….what's going on? You've been pretty much avoiding me since the night in the med bay" he sighed sadly "What did I do?"

Tali's jaw dropped at that, he thought he was to blame? Her head dropped as she snapped her eyes shut, she couldn't believe it. In trying to not be selfish and push herself on Feral she'd done exactly the opposite. She'd pushed herself away from him and now he was worrying he'd done something to her?

"Feral no…no you didn't do anything wrong….oh Keelah" she managed to squeak out, he was so close to her again and his burning eyes were staring straight into hers. "It's just I…I um….." stumbling over her words more and more as she held her hands into her chest.

"What?...what could it possibly be Tali? After everything I said to you that night, what could make you distance yourself from me?" Feral was trying to make sense of it, he didn't blame the woman but he just wanted to know why. He wanted to be able to make this better so his friend would talk to him again.

Tali's face blushed as she remembered what she said and why she had said it. "….It wasn't what you said….more….." she started fidgeting more and more "It's hot in here right? Keelah it's so hot all of a sudden"

"Tali. More?...Feral grabbed her attention again and put her mind back on track.

"More….what I said…to you…." Tali looked down in defeat, she'd finally said it. She'd been cryptic but there's no way Feral wouldn't get it.

Feral just blinked for a second before his eyes opened wide "Oh…oh you mean when….." a red tint appeared on his cheeks as he stared at the woman in surprise

"Feral I'm sorry! I'm so sorry I didn't mean too really I didn't it just slipped out you'd said such a nice thing to me and then I just forgot myself and now I'm talking too much I do that when I'm nervous and….." she finally stopped to breath when Feral grabbed her shoulders and stared into her eyes.

Her heart sank when his head just dropped and she was about to talk more when she noticed his shoulders shaking. "Feral I'm so sorry please don't be upset with me…" she felt like she was about to start crying too when she realised…..he was laughing.

Feral's head came back up and he had a big smile on his face and he was laughing. Tali didn't know what to think, of all the reactions she'd imagined he'd have…this wasn't one of them.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry" Feral bit his lip and took deep breaths in and out through his nose. Looking straight into her eyes "Tali you accidentally let slip that you'd been checking me out and….you thought I'd be mad? You are just…just so adorable" he smiled gently at the Quarian.

That was the moment when Tali's face exploded, the blush she had gotten so many times in the past erupted onto her face at Feral's words. "But…but I…What?" she practically shrieked the last one "I was taking advantage of you when you were injured! You're shirt had been cut off because you'd been blown up saving my life! Why aren't you mad-"

"Tali stop" Feral tried to stop her from rambling on

Tali either hadn't heard him or she just ignored him " -with me? Not only did I take advantage of you but I said something that I shouldn't have. You were still recovering and oh Keelah please don't be mad with me. I'm so sorry that I thought we could be anything more than friends I just couldn't help myself" in her rambling she failed to notice the smile on Feral's face.

Suddenly she squeaked as one of Feral's arms coiled around her side and tugged her into his body, his other hand cupping her helmet gently. "Feral what are you…" she stopped talking as Feral leant forward and placed his lips gently onto her mouth piece. It wasn't really a kiss but Feral knew exactly where her lips were and he'd kissed in the exact spot. Once again in their relationship, the significance of the action was enormous.

Tali froze in Feral's arms, watching his face as he gently 'kissed' her. Her arms were trapped up against his chest and she turned them towards his body, placing them gently on top of his shirt. It didn't last for long but for Tali it could've lasted forever. She watched his eyes slowly open and she just gulped at the image, his emotions being perfectly amplified by the deep red orbs.

Tali just stood in his embrace, leaning into his arms and chest as he squeezed her to him. She just watched him lean back, wishing that it had been real. Wishing that her damn visor could come off. "Maybe you weren't the only one who thought that Tali" his words were soft and precise, and her heart just soared as he spoke them.

She squeezed her hands gently against his shirt, just holding onto him as tightly as she could. "B-but…why? I'm just a quarian and you could have so much more" she jumped slightly as Feral growled

"What have I told you from the first day we met? To me you are not just some Quarian" Feral growled softly before his face turned back into a small smile, pushing his forehead into the visor and looking into her eyes "You've only ever been Tali to me and what more could I possibly want? You're the best friend I've ever had, you make me smile and…Tali you make everything that happened to me…all the torture all the pain and agony and….just everything I went through." He sighed, stroking the side of her helmet gently and squeezing his hand into her side.

"Tali if I had to choose between that never happening and meeting you. I'd choose meeting you every single time…..even with everything that brings because….you are worth it" Feral just held her as tightly as he could. Shepard, Garrus and Kaidan, they had all helped him cope. Hell even Wrex had helped him cope, but Tali. She'd made those 4 hellish years seem worthwhile.

Tali was speechless, everything he'd just said. The realisation that he was reciprocating her feelings. It was getting too much to handle. Her vision was locked onto Feral's eyes and the look he was giving her was one she'd never seen, it was so gentle and caring. "Do you really mean all that?" she slowly said, biting her lip gently as a tear ran down her cheek.

Again Feral just smiled, leaning forward and kissing her visor gently. Leaving a very small visible print on the screen before the automated systems cleaned the screen. Once again gazing straight into her eyes as he uttered a single word that made Tali cling onto him as tightly as she could.

"Yes" Feral hadn't even finished saying the word when Tali's arms launched around his neck and tugged herself into him as tightly as she could. Feral just smiled and responded by wrapping both of his arms around her as tightly as she could handle. The two standing in the blue shimmering light before Feral finally spoke again.

"Listen we still have a long time until we reach the Citadel, why don't I grab our cots and we can sit down? If you want we can just cuddle more or we can talk…or both….." Feral smiled gently as he leaned back to look down at Tali

"Bosh'tet, we were having a moment" She wiggled in his arms teasingly

Feral feigned hurt "Oh I'm sorry for spoiling the moment by offering to have another moment with you" he just stuck his tongue out and the small woman giggled softly "No, spoiling the moment would've been if I'd taken off your visor and you got sick or if I suddenly grabbed your butt" he raised his eyebrows before laughing again when Tali playfully smacking his shoulders.

"Keelah Feral!...wait….so this whole time you've been…what's the human phrase?"

"Checking you out?" Feral offered as he grinned playfully

"Yes thank you" Tali smiled back before coughing and acting like she had been again "So this whole time you've been 'checking me out' too?" she purred that last bit out, Tali was trying to be mad but she found herself liking the thought of him looking at her like she had looked at him

"Mhm" Feral just nodded, a slight purr in his voice as well "Why? Do you really mind?" he leant in again and nuzzled his cheek into the side of her helmet.

"Not even slightly" again the purr rolled the words off her tongue "But!" she pushed her arms out so Feral had to step back "You can get the cots and I'll wait here for you. I'd hate for you to _check me out_ again when I walk ahead of you"

Feral just blinked at the sound of her voice "Ok….I'll go get them but before I do. That….that sounded so sexy" he just walked towards the door, using his omni-tool to override the encryption and stepped out into the hallway. Completely unaware that Tali had been using the time to stare at him happily. She sighed as the door shut, it'd only be a brief moment but she had this to herself.

"Yes! Yes Yes Yes!" she practically squealed as she hopped on the spot before standing still again as Feral stepped back into the room with the two cots, encrypting the door again. For the first time in two days, Tali was looking forward to talking to Feral again.

She did nothing but watch him walk back down with a huge smile on her face until he folded both cots out into the middle of the room. They could only have one person on each but they were placed next to each other, so they'd be able to lie close together. They both laid down on their respective cots, looking over at each other before they pushed their foreheads together and smiled, their fingers intertwining as they lay together.

"So…what does this make us?" Tali finally asked "Are we…..together?" she had no idea on the protocol on these types of things.

Feral looked up to the ceiling before looking back at her "I guess so" he grinned happily at the woman, squeezing her hand gently in his. "To be honest I've never done this before either…..but yeah…..I'd like that a lot"

The two just smiled back at each other, twirling their fingers around each other's gently. Tali couldn't believe the outcome of their talk, she'd imagined Feral just accepting her apology and then the two could be friends again. That was her best case scenario and she'd never even imagined this, all those ideas of her being selfish were being thrown away. She was happy and if anyone didn't like that she'd have to introduce them to her shotgun. She was happy and more importantly Feral was happy, nothing else mattered to her.

Eventually she was shook out of her thoughts by Feral "So…..how does this work? With the environmental suit and all?...don't get me wrong I'm not having second thoughts I'm just curious"

Tali sighed gently in her helmet, it was a fair question. If they were going to have a relationship it was a question that needed discussing. "Well…as you know we wear these because our immune systems aren't strong enough. Obviously that doesn't stop Quarians from…..reproducing" she blushed at that word as the thought entered her mind before she shook it out again "or erm….any other physical contact of course" she coughed slightly at that trying to hide her embarrassment

"Of course" Feral just grinned back playfully "I remember you mentioning that Quarians take time to adapt to foreign particles though, for an environment that makes sense but…..how does that happen between people?" he was still squeezing her hand, Feral could tell that she was getting flushed by this line of questioning. "Before you answer though…reproducing wasn't exactly why I was asking….right now I'd just like to focus on being able to actually kiss you Tali."

Tali blushed even more at that "No no of course! I didn't mean that I wanted…I mean….I was just telling you how Quarians handle it because obviously…yes I'd like that" she stopped herself from going on too much. Feral had just raised an eyebrow and waited for her to regain control over her speech. She was blushing because of the thought of her and Feral…..and then from the thought of him taking her visor off and finally being able to feel his lips against hers.

"Keelah I'd love that Feral. I'm sorry if you thought I was….well trying to get you" she slowly spoke, trying to control her smile and blush

"Get me what?...into bed with you?" he smirked playfully "Have you not noticed where we are already?" he looked down at the cots

Tali just glared at him as the blush on her face grew more "Bosh'tet you know what I meant" she grumbled as she looked away from him, begging him not to make her say it

Feral just laughed and pulled her hand up with his before he kissed her fingers gently "I'm sorry I was only teasing but really. How do we…get you adapted to..well…me? and how sick will you get?" Feral didn't know huge amounts of Quarian physiology but he knew enough to know that. Foreign contaminants would make her sick, no matter what they came from.

Tali just fidgeted slightly, she knew how it all worked. They'd been taught all about their immune systems and how Quarians overcame that. "Well…because Quarians are always in their suits usually what happens is they link their suit environments…..as for how sick we get? At first it can be pretty bad but as we adapt….eventually we don't. We can take antibiotics to lessen the sickness" she just shrugged as they both lay back on the cots.

Feral just sat in thought gently "So….at the moment we can't do a lot but…after this is done…..I suppose we could start working on that then" he smiled gently before looking back over at Tali, she was just staring up at the ceiling "….Tali? is everything ok?"

"You really believe we'll survive this?...and even if we do….I need to go back to the migrant fleet I can't just abandon them" she sighed and just kept looking up at the ceiling. "How are we going to do any of that?"

Feral rolled onto his side and turned her head towards him, he forced her to look into his eyes as he softly spoke "I don't know Tali, but like you said…I only just got you too. I'll think of something don't you worry. Just trust me" he smiled again and Tali couldn't help but smile back gently

Tali gently cupped Feral's cheek, stroking her thumb gently along his skin "I do trust you, how could I not when you have eyes like that?" her words purring out happily

"Wait…..my eyes?" he looked confused, he'd heard many things about his eyes but most people were scared of the deep red colour "What about my eyes?"

"Your eyes seem to change according to how you feel, I've seen them look so angry and full of fury" Feral's face dropped slightly but Tali kept her hand on his cheek as she carried on speaking "but I've also seen them filled with kindness and sadness. I've always thought your eyes were attractive Feral" Tali smiled happily when his lips curled back up into a smile, one of his enlarged canines showing slightly before Tali realised she'd never asked.

"Feral….what colour were your eyes before you were kidnapped?" she couldn't imagine the man without the deep red eyes, but she also knew they weren't natural.

Feral chuckled slightly "You really want to know?" he laughed when Tali just nodded happily "Why don't I show you then? have you still got my dog tags?" He sat up and edged to the bottom of the cot, sitting over the end of it as Tali moved down with him, rummaging through her pockets before she pulled out the pieces of metal.

"What do your dog tags have to do with this?" she just watched as he took the metal and ran his fingers along the back of both of them.

"Ahhh good, it is still here" Feral smiled at the pieces of metal "Can I borrow your knife please?" he held out his hand and Tali slowly reached down to her boot, pulling out the sharp blade before handing it to him. "Thank you very much" he pushed the bottom of the knife into the base of one of the dog tags and a little piece of metal was pushed up.

Feral then handed Tali's knife back as she watched him slowly pick off a small rectangular piece of metal, one side was the same colour as the dog tags and the other revealed its true nature. It was a small chip. "It's a small trick some Alliance soldiers use, we put a chip on the back of our tags so if we ever get killed…..more than just metal gets sent home. Something for our families to remember us by" he smiled slightly as he pushed the chip into his omni-tool, tapping at the glowing computer until a small holographic screen came up.

Tali sat forward as Feral held his arm out, she gasped slightly when an image came into view. It was a group of Alliance soldiers, men and woman all dressed in their combat gear. They were in a field somewhere and they were all posed for the camera. "This was my old platoon, before I was drafted into special ops….before I was made an operations chief. That's not why I'm really showing you though because if you look just….there" he pointed at the image and then zoomed in on the figure in question.

Tali watched as the image got bigger, it was Feral or perhaps it'd be correct to say that was Alex. Before he'd been kidnapped, she noted that he really didn't look all that different. Obviously he was older, his hair was slightly longer and he was much more muscular….but the big difference was his eyes. Instead of the deep, red eyes she'd grown to love she found ocean blue eyes in their place. There was a darker ring around the blue orbs and the irises were round instead of slits but they were still his eyes.

"Keelah…..what is it with you and having gorgeous eyes?" she was staring back and forth between the two. Alex and Feral, they were so different and yet exactly the same. In the picture he had his big smile on his face, that same infectious smile that shined through in the worst of situations.

"Yh well look who's talking" Feral stuck his tongue out her playfully "Your eyes practically shine through that visor like stars Tali"

Tali just looked down and rubbed her fingers together "My eyes aren't all that special, they're pretty typical amongst Quarians actually" she kept looking down at her hands until she saw Feral's fingers get in the way of her nervous twiddling.

"Tali your eyes are beautiful, don't ever think differently. If you haven't noticed whenever we used to talk I would always be looking at your eyes" Feral smiled as she slowly started to look up again "Not because that's the 'polite thing to do' though…..they are just so…..pretty" his words tapered off as her eyes looked back into his again

He just stared happily back into her glowing orbs before shaking his head "…..what was I saying? I'm sorry something magical just looked at me and I can't remember what I was doing"

Tali couldn't help but giggle, even when he was being sweet Feral just couldn't resist the temptation to make her laugh. She wiggled at the end of the cot as she looked over to him, leaning forward and pushing her visor into his forehead. Nuzzling the screen against his skin gently "Thank you Feral. Thank you for making me feel so…wonderful" she smiled happily as Feral cupped the side of her head again and kissed the top of her visor gently.

"Always Tali" He smiled as he sat back slightly "That's what boyfriends are for right?" smirking as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her tightly into his side. "Now this photo isn't all that I have on here if you're interested" he grinned playfully down at Tali before she nodded and rested her head on his shoulder.

She would've said something but she was too busy biting her tongue and trying not to squeal from his words. 'Boyfriend….my boyfriend…Keelah my father will hate him' she smiled slightly to herself as she watched as Feral brought up more images and videos from his past.

The two just sat in the engine room's shimmering light, cuddled up together as they laughed at the ridiculous things Feral had put on his chip. A poker game between him and his friends where someone had worn reflective sunglasses by accident. He and his friends singing a rendition of 'Bohemian Rhapsody' which according to Feral was a classic. There were some less silly things though, videos of Feral training and playing sports for his unit. Tali was wincing the entire time she watched small clips of the rugby match, and it was weird to see Feral with a cut that didn't heal in seconds.

Tali couldn't help but smile more and more as she watched, wrapping her arms around Feral's as she lay against his shoulder. Of all the memories he could've chosen, he showed the ones that made her smile. The new couple just sat and watched videos on the chip until the Normandy docked in the citadel, their fingers constantly tangled as they held each other.


	14. The Lockdown Before the Storm

Shepard, Feral and Liara were making their way to the council chambers. Feral wasn't wearing his recon hood as he had hoped, after the Flux incident and the human ambassador's threats he'd hoped to remain incognito. Shepard told him it wasn't worth it, they'd just make him reveal himself and then he'd be accused of concealing his identity. Shepard had considered the two possible causes of the councils request to see him. It was either about what they had discovered on Virmire, Sovereign and Ilos, or it was about the super soldier. He really hoped it was the latter, it meant they could be chasing after Saren as soon as possible.

They were in the elevator on the ride up to the council chambers and weirdly Feral seemed incredibly calm. He was standing in the elevator quietly and humming to himself, Shepard couldn't help it.

"Ok who are you and what have you done with Feral?" He smirked over his shoulder at the man.

"Hmm? I don't know what you're talking about….." he looked confused, his vision changing from Shepard and Liara as they both looked at him strangely

"What the commander means is, you're in an elevator and you're humming while standing perfectly still" Liara finished for Shepard.

Feral's eyes went wide briefly "OH! right of course Ahhhh!" his fake groan vibrating through the box before he threw his head into the side of the elevator "Ow! Fuck…." and left a small dent in the metal wall before clutching his head. Shepard and Liara just winced before laughing at the man as he held his head.

"Ok ok I get it you're definitely Feral" Shepard just laughed as Feral continued to groan in pain, Liara biting her lip to stop herself laughing while he was in pain.

Eventually the group stepped out of the elevator, Feral still holding his head while his headache subsided. Growling at his two companions as they couldn't help but laugh some more. It didn't take long for the group to reach the stairs leading up to the council. Captain Anderson was already there waiting for them.

"Shepard, I'm glad you came as fast as you could. The council have made a decision concerning Saren" he looked happy, clearly whatever Udina had told him had been very good news. He rolled his eyes slightly when Feral sighed in relief.

"Oh good I don't have to meet the council" he beamed happily, stepping off to the side to sit down on one of the benches.

Anderson just looked at Shepard "Was that who I think it was?" he was looking over at the man who had walked off and was now twiddling his fingers on one of the benches in the chambers.

Shepard sighed and smiled slightly "Yes captain that's him. A super soldier in the flesh"

Anderson was confused, he'd seen the images taken from Flux. He'd even gone to see the damage and he'd seen all of the blood "Shepard, the Flux bomb happened just over 2 days ago. I know you said he heals fast but….he looks healthier than you"

Shepard looked back at Feral briefly before turning back to the flummoxed captain "It took him a night to heal from the explosion, he was up and fighting again the very next morning. Captain he even survived a gunshot to the head….he's…very tenacious" The commander just chuckled at that.

Anderson shook his head slightly "I just…..that's incredible. Either way that can wait, the council will see you now. If you want Ms T'soni can accompany you, I'm sure her expertise will come in handy." He gestured towards the stairs where Shepard could see Udina was waiting. He and Liara quickly stepped up the stairs and out of sight of the Captain.

Anderson just looked over to Feral, who had put one leg over the other and was staring up at the ceiling….or sleeping he couldn't quite tell which. He slowly started to move towards the bench he was sitting on and when he got close the sitting man instantly looked straight at him.

"You….must be Captain David Anderson…right?" Feral smiled as he pointed a finger straight at Anderson.

"Shepard tell you about me?" Anderson looked questioningly at Feral, he wondered how much Shepard had to tell him to win back his trust after the identity situation.

Feral laughed "No, I knew who you were the moment I heard your name. My special ops Captain used to talk about how you were a shining example of an Alliance marine." He wiggled his head slightly at that.

Anderson chuckled at that "Fair enough then, mind if I sit?" he gestured to the bench Feral was perched on, and the red eyed man simply nodded and shifted over slightly so Anderson had room to sit.

"So…you didn't come over here just to sit down did you?" Feral looked back up at the ceiling

Anderson just rested his elbows on his knees as he sat forward "How do you know? I'm not as young as I once was" he smirked slightly before he looked back at Feral who just laughed in response

"Oh please you're not _that_ old Anderson" he was smiling at that joke "Besides, if you were I would've heard creaking in your joints. So…I'll ask again, what brings you over here?"

"Would you believe that it was just to talk to you?" Anderson just simply said

Feral sighed and leant forward as well, matching the Captains position "I'd believe it, but whether I want to talk about it is something else entirely" his manner became serious and his eyes glared slightly at the captain

Anderson raised his hands defensively "Don't worry I'm not going to ask about your previous identity, I've learnt that lesson" he sighed in relief when Feral became less tense "I was just wondering, of all the things you could've done once freed and you chose to join Shepard. My only question is why?"

Feral just sat there for a moment, it was more or less the one question he hadn't been asked yet. "I guess if you look at it like that, it does seem…odd." He cocked his head as he thought "I suppose you could say after 4 years of nothing but experiments I just wanted something…..familiar. I was a marine, a new mission was as familiar to me as possible and then….Shepard's team is like no other I've ever seen" he grinned at that "How could I possibly resist all that fun?"

Anderson just stared as the super soldier grinned, he noted how his red eyes were vibrating along with the sharp canines shining in his smile. "It certainly is an usual group, but you are all getting the job done. Hopefully now you won't have to do it alone"

Feral's shoulders shook as he kept his laugh quiet "I doubt it Anderson but…even if they don't help us we can do it. Shepard is the best leader I've ever had and our team is strong. Saren doesn't stand a chance" the material of his gloves stretching slightly as he clenched his fists.

The Captain just smiled at the man's determination. He was sure it was a feeling shared by the entirety of the Normandy, especially after Chief Williams' death on Virmire. "I have no doubt that you can all do it. Although when you do complete this mission, I was just curious. What then?"

Feral just looked across at the elder man "I'm not re-joining the Alliance Captain, sorry that's not up for discussion…however there is something that maybe you could help me with" again the grin adorned his face. Captain Anderson just wondered what the super soldier could possibly have in mind.

Shepard was walking down the steps from the council. 'Those idiots!' he was screaming out loud within the confines of his head. He couldn't believe what they had decided. Saren was no longer a threat, the reapers were a lie in order to get the Geth to follow him and Ilos was beyond the Mu Relay and therefore any sort of mobilisation could trigger a war with the Terminus Systems. All they were going to do is put more fleets around every mass relay in citadel space.

After everything he had discovered, all the evidence he had to prove the vision he had seen from the Prothean devices. The Conduit, whatever it was Saren wanted it but the council had decided it wasn't worth the investigation. Saren was a threat to them all and with Sovereign he was even more dangerous, why couldn't they see that? Shepard was seething from the meeting, he couldn't believe they weren't going to do anything, and to top it all off the Normandy had been put on lock down to prevent the commander chasing Saren down anyway.

Shepard wasn't out for the count yet though, first and foremost he had two of the best computer and hacking experts in the universe on his ship. The lockdown wouldn't hold them down, no matter what the council had said. Saren had to be stopped and he couldn't be allowed to find the conduit on Ilos.

The commander and Liara were both walking down towards Feral and Anderson, who had stood up as the pair had walked away from the meeting. Feral had already guessed his mood from the look on both of their faces.

"That bad?" he asked, his voice sounded annoyed

"We've been shut out. They're not sending fleets to Ilos and we're locked in the Citadel." Shepard just growled angrily through his teeth

Feral and Anderson just looked up at the council and then back to Shepard. "What?" they both asked simultaneously.

"We're stuck on the citadel. The council isn't going to do anything to stop Saren and Sovereign other than increase fleet presence around council space mass relays" Liara stated, she sounded a little calmer but it was only for Shepard's sake.

Feral sighed and looked down at the floor "Great….so now what do we do?"

Shepard stepped in closer to the two men, whispering so no one could over hear his words "Ok listen up. Anderson if you can I'd like you to try and figure out ways to beat this lockdown. Feral, we are going to go back to the Normandy. I want you and Tali to try and crack it open from the ship itself, I know it's a long shot but if anyone can do it you two can."

Feral just listened before nodding "And if we can't hopefully the Captain can come up with an alternative…..ok sounds like a plan for now. But if anything right now we need to move as fast as we can"

Shepard nodded and starting walking towards the elevator, Anderson would wait for Udina and then head back to the embassy. They didn't want to raise any more suspicion than necessary. Feral and Liara just followed after him as quickly as they could. Feral was keeping quiet, trying to figure out what sort of codes they'd use and how he'd break them. But he knew it was pointless, there was nothing he could do until he saw the coding itself.

The team stepped back into the elevator and Feral sat back on one of the rails on the side, and again just started humming softly to himself. Shepard and Liara once again were surprised by Feral's new found fondness of the devices.

"Ok seriously Feral, what happened to make you this relaxed in an elevator?" Shepard and Liara sat back on the rail on the other side of the box.

Feral sighed and scratched the back of his neck gingerly "Something good" he smiled gently and a kind look shone in his eyes.

Shepard couldn't help smile back at his friends happiness "Tali?" he raised an eyebrow at the now blushing man.

Feral just coughed and looked off to the side trying his best to avoid answering the question, glaring slightly at the man and the asari as they chuckled at his embarrassment.

Feral grinned playfully "So what about you two? I'm guessing it's going well because you're scent is on each other" he slowly stuck his tongue as the two both stared at him in shock.

Liara was the first to burst out "What are you talking about? John and I haven't done anything like that yet! We've only just kissed if you must know!" she shouted at Feral and to her surprise his smile just got bigger.

Shepard just put his palm into his head and sighed "Liara…..he was lying."

Liara just looked at the commander "….what?"

"He was baiting you Liara, I made him promise never to use his senses to spy on our relationship" Shepard calmly stated as Feral just kept grinning, before he started to laugh.

"So….he didn't know anything until I just told him?" Liara was blushing at the fact she'd been so easily played "I'm so sorry John"

Shepard just put his arm up and around her shoulder and pulled her into him "Don't be, Feral won't tell anyone besides we could probably really annoy him by getting all close right now" his sentence was responded by Liara blushing even more and Feral groaning

"Ok ok! I'll hit my head against the wall! Just for the love of god keep it in your own damn room" He turned away from the two and looked towards the door, smirking and then laughing as the two just cuddled in the corner before finally splitting apart when they reached the bottom of the tower.

- The Normandy –

Joker turned around as soon as Shepard returned into the Normandy "Commander we have a problem we've been –"he was cut off by Shepard

"We know Joker we're on it, Liara go and get Tali. Feral take one of the consoles" Shepard just ordered and Joker watched Liara run down towards the CIC and Feral quickly sat down in one of the empty co-pilot seats.

Feral immediately started typing away at the consoles, trying to find the code that had the Normandy locked in dock. Joker sat back down into his seat and sighed

"Well there goes my dramatic speech for when you guys got back" he just sighed and sank into his seat slightly

Feral laughed as he watched Joker look defused from his periphery "Yeah well Shepard has a habit of doing that doesn't he?" Joker was about to reply before Feral just shushed him "That was rhetorical and I'm busy" He went back to working through the citadel's systems, lines of code and computer programming flying across the screen in front of him.

Shepard just smiled as he watched Feral shut Joker up, apparently the pilot had no interest in trying to fight against the man. Especially seeing as Feral could break his bones by pinching him. It was about 5 minutes before he turned around, hearing a pair of footsteps behind him. Liara was bringing Tali up to speed and the moment they stepped into the cockpit she went straight into the other co-pilot seat.

Shepard smiled as the two of them instantly started co-ordinating their efforts, he couldn't believe how fast they could work with each other…not that he could understand a word of what they were saying. It was a small chance that this would work, but if any pair of technicians in the universe could do it, it'd be these two. They practically knew what each other was thinking and anticipating the other almost perfectly. Shepard smiled as he remembered what had happened in the elevator, he was happy for the both of them.

They kept working for about 10 minutes but eventually Feral just sat back and sighed, looking over at Tali who just nodded at him. "Well there's good news and there is bad news. The good news is we can crack the code, the bad news is it'll take us a few days." He rubbed the side of his nose as he stared at the screen.

Shepard sighed "Will I understand a word of the reason why?"

Feral bit his lip before he turned onto his side into the seat "On a really basic level, it's just that we're not smart enough. The algorithms used are heavily mathematically based and it'd require a super computer or an AI to crack it, and even then it'd probably take a few hours. Tali and I are clever…but we're not super computers."

"So we have to see if Anderson comes up with an idea don't we?" Shepard stated, he wasn't going to lose hope. They still had an option and Anderson wasn't one to let him down, not that Feral and Tali had let him down at all. If it couldn't be done it couldn't be done.

"Pretty much Shepard, I mean we can keep looking for a loop hole in the meantime but….don't expect anything" Feral spun back around in his seat, gesturing for Tali to come and join him at his screen. Two screens wouldn't do any good at this point and the woman happily obliged, standing behind him and putting her forearms on his shoulder and the chin of her helmet on his head.

"Ok then, you two have fun. Joker call me if Anderson makes contact with us" Joker nodded back as Shepard and Liara both started walking back towards the mess hall. Liara just stood behind him as he took off his armour, putting the pieces in his personal locker. As he put the last piece away he stared at the N7 on the chest, pushing into his locker and pulling it shut. Staring at the wall before he just punched the metal locker.

Groaning as he realised that despite how soft Feral could make it look, the metal that built the lockers was in fact…well…metal. He gripped his hand before leaning back against the lockers. Looking up only as Liara came over and took his hand gently, working her fingers between his knuckles in an effort to ease the pain.

He smiled gently at the blue woman as he watched her fingers gently push into his skin. "Thanks Liara" she just smiled back as she held his hand between hers.

"Anything for you John" she smiled happily as she watched him slowly relax, the pain in his hand slowly ebbing away. "You know there was nothing else you could do with the council, you've done so much and now you have your friends doing everything they can to help you again"

Shepard sighed "But what if we can't figure it out? What if we fail?"

Liara responded by taking her hands and cupping his cheeks gently "If you think like that then we've already lost. We will beat Saren and make him pay for all he has done"

Shepard smiled at that, the feeling of Liara's hands on his skin and the sight of her beautiful eyes. He just wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her in closer "So you are prescribing positive thinking doctor?" smirking playfully

Liara just smiled back as she slid her arms around his neck "You know I'm not that kind of Doctor John but yes, positive thinking would definitely help"

Their breathing started to match as they lent in slowly before suddenly moving away as Joker's voice filled the room "Commander, Anderson has contacted us. He wants to meet you in Flux" the two just sighed as they listened to the news.

Shepard then glared upwards as he realised something "Joker….have you been spying on us?"

"Uh no, I just guessed you'd be in the mess hall" came the slightly shaky response

"He was Shepard, we tried to stop him but he overpowered me" Feral's voice came through the intercom in the background before a slap and a bosh'tet was heard as well.

"Joker was but we weren't Shepard" Tali added quickly

The commander sighed, hopefully he had just heard what they had said instead of seeing it. "I'll be up in a minute, Feral and Tali can you be ready to come along as well? Whatever Anderson's plan is we may need tech experts." He slowly turned around to start putting his armour back on before Liara gave him a peck on the cheek and walked off into her office, smiling happily to herself.

"Aye aye Shepard, we'll be up here waiting for you when you're ready" Feral responded before the line went quiet permanently

- Citadel outside Flux –

Feral groaned as they walked up to the club "Do I really have to go back in there?" he was wincing slightly as he remembered how much it had hurt to be blown up after being poisoned

"That is why you are wearing your recon hood Feral" Tali just poked at the side of his head for effect

Feral just shrugged "Right, just…..if I see a drink coming anywhere near me I'm running away" the group was taking the steps up to the club and honestly Feral was surprised when he walked in. Everything was back exactly the way it had been already, he expected it to have taken longer.

"Ok….how did they fix this place so damn fast?" Feral was looking around, down to the sides where he had lain and there was nothing that made it seem like a bomb had gone off recently.

"Keepers" Shepard just said and pointed to one of the green insectoid aliens wondering around the club "You'd be amazed what they can do" he and Tali were scanning the club until eventually they spotted him sitting at one of the tables. Shepard strode towards him as fast as they could, if he had a solution they couldn't afford to wait.

"Shepard, Tali'Zorah, Feral; please take a seat" The three just sat down and Anderson sighed "I'm sorry to hear plan A didn't work but I have an idea for you and it should work."

The squad instantly perked up at that, should was good. Should was very good. "All right then, let's hear them" Shepard said, glad the music in the club was so loud. It meant listening in would be very difficult without being completely obvious to Feral.

"I did some digging. Turns out the controls that keep the docking bay locked are somewhere in C-Sec, I can sneak or muscle my way into the control room and unlock the Normandy from there." Anderson laid it out for them

Feral was the first to speak up "Uh….not that I don't appreciate that idea but breaking into C-Sec doesn't seem exactly subtle….what if you get caught before you can unlock the docks?"

Shepard agreed with the comment and shook his head "He's right Anderson, it's too risky. I'm sorry I can't let you go ahead with it" Anderson's face confused him slightly, the man was still smiling

"I hoped you'd say that because there is a better option anyway" Shepard just raised an eyebrow at the Captain, he'd only talked to Feral for about 5 or 10 minutes…what could Feral have done to Anderson in that time?

Feral couldn't help but pop a grin at that statement "Ok we'll bite, what is it?"

"Udina is responsible for the lockdown, the computer in his office has the major control in it. I can go to his office and hack his computer and cancel the order. It'll be an instantaneous release on the lock and you can get out of here before he realises what I've done." Anderson smiled as everyone seemed a lot happier with the plan

"And if Udina is already in his office when you arrive? Or if he comes back when you're in the middle of it?" Tali asked, she had seen Udina and he didn't strike her as a forgiving man.

"Don't worry about that, I can come up with something" Anderson rubbed his knuckles gently as he smiled at the group

Feral just laughed even louder "Yh well I heard what he tried to do after the Flux incident, so if he does show up…come up with something for me too" his grin was obvious behind his recon hood and Tali kicked his leg gently under the table. Even she wanted to punch the bosh'tet of a human as well but she pretended to keep the moral high ground, silently scolding her boyfriend under the table.

Shepard rolled his eyes slightly at the two's behaviour before he finally spoke up "Ok then, that plan is good. We're ready to go the moment you are Anderson, just give us the word and we'll run back to the Normandy" all three of them got as serious as they could again.

"I'm ready as well, I'll stay here for another 10 minutes before I make my way to the presidium and the embassies. That should give you about 25 minutes before the lockdown is released, I suggest you hurry so you can get your crew ready" Anderson stated, sitting back in his char "Don't worry I'll be fine, Udina isn't that strong and stopping Saren is more important. Just make sure you stop the SOB"

Shepard nodded and stood up, followed quickly by Feral and Tali. "Good luck Anderson" Shepard said as he started to walk away. Tali followed him but Feral lit up his omni-tool.

"I don't know how good you are at hacking but take this, it's a small program that can be used to bypass just about anything. It'll get you through his system that much faster" Feral watched as the captain's omni-tool lit up as well.

"Thank you, I'll be sure to put it to good use. Stay safe son" Anderson just nodded at Feral, who gave a polite but lazy two fingered salute back before running after Tali and Shepard.

People on the citadel just watched as the group of two humans and a quarian sprinted their way through the wards towards C-Sec. It must have been a record time for the group for making it from Flux to the Normandy; the longest part had been the elevator ride. This time Tali had to ask, she'd noticed that on the way down Feral had been quiet on both trips.

"Feral are you ok?" She whispered quietly into Feral's ear "You've been quiet in the elevator twice now" she was slightly worried at the loss of his head beating, the last time it had happened he almost lost control of himself.

Feral didn't even respond he just leaned forward and rubbed his hooded head gently into her visor before leaning back and standing straight again

"Oh…..oh well ok then" Tali blushed gently at his silent reply, squirming happily as she saw the effect their relationship was having on him.

As soon as the elevator opened again, the three sprinted straight into the Normandy and waited. Time would tell as Joker pulled up the panel that showed their docking privileges. As soon as it turned green all systems would be go. The commander told Feral and Tali to head to the engine room, they needed to be as ready as possible the moment they were clear. As soon as it turned green, Saren was going down.

- Ambassador Udina's office –

Anderson was moving as quickly as he could, by now Shepard would be back on the Normandy and his entire team would be ready. Waiting for the opportunity to leave and chase down that rogue bastard. He stepped up to the asari at the reception.

"Excuse me, you don't know if Ambassador Udina is in his office do you?" he quietly asked remaining as calm as he could.

The asari hit a few buttons "Yes he is, would you like me to let him know you're on your way?" the woman smiled gently up at the Captain.

"No that's ok, I'm not going to be there for very long. No need to disturb him" Anderson just smiled back as he walked off towards the human embassy. 'Damn, I was hoping he'd be out…..Oh well it's a good thing I never let my right hook weaken' he smiled slightly at that before regaining his composure.

The door to Udina's office opened and he quickly stepped into the room, Udina was at his desk and he looked up as Anderson stormed towards him "Anderson? What are you doing here I didn't send for yo-"

Anderson stopped him mid-sentence as his fist connected cleanly with the side of the politicians head. Knocking him out cold instantly and he just watched as he slumped over onto his desk before typing at the terminal. Luckily he wouldn't need Feral's decryption programme as the ambassador had already unlocked it to work. Anderson quickly ran through all of the systems before finally finding the right one.

"There….god speed Shepard." He smiled as he ran out of the embassy, figuring it would be best to be elsewhere when the politician regained consciousness.

- SSV Normandy –

Shepard and Joker were still in the cockpit, waiting for the light to turn green until finally a beep was heard and the colour changed. The Normandy rumbling slightly as the docking arms were released from the wings of the vessel.

"Now Joker! Get us out of here!" Shepard shouted as he turned around, Joker just got straight to work and before anyone in the citadel had any idea what was going on. Joker had piloted his baby out of the docks and they were heading out of Council Space. He could fly a decent way and then turn on the stealth systems, that way they could make their way to the Mu Relay in peace.

It would be a few hours before they'd hit the Mu Relay, and once the excitement of escaping the citadel had passed Shepard ordered that his team were to rest up. He'd need them to be at 100% for the mission with Saren. Kaidan and Garrus were back in their sleeping pods and the majority of the crew where either in the mess hall or in the cargo bay. Feral and Tali had been given the engine room to sleep in until the time came and Wrex was in the med bay.

Shepard was sitting in his office when he heard a knock on his door "Come in" he turned and stood up when he saw Liara enter his room. "Liara what can-" he was cut off as the Asari wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips firmly into his.

She broke the kiss briefly "John, If anyone can beat Saren it's you and this team but….just in case" this time Shepard cut her off and the two stumbled back towards the bed.

- Normandy's Engine room –

Feral and Tali were both lying on their respective cots, they were still pushed together in the middle of the room and they were facing each other. Feral's armour was laid out against the side of the room and he was sleeping in his t-shirt and military trousers. Feral was fast asleep but Tali couldn't sleep. She was just lying on her cot, watching how peaceful Feral looked.

Smiling gently as she watched the man's chest rise and fall slowly, she was still amazed at how quickly he could fall asleep. With one hand under her head, letting her rest on her arm as well as the small pillows Shepard still had yet to recollect. Her free hand was gently tracing along the lines of his hand, wishing that she could actually feel his skin against hers. For now this would be good enough but she couldn't wait for the day that her immune system would be able to cope with him.

She sighed at that thought, her smile dropping slightly as she remembered that once this mission was over. She'd be heading back to the migrant fleet and Feral…..she had no idea what Feral would do. He'd told her not to worry but she couldn't help it, she couldn't think of any possible way they'd be able to stay together unless she abandoned the quarian fleet….but she couldn't, she never would and she knew Feral would never let her.

Instead Tali just remembered Feral as he always was, the laugh and the smile of the man she cared so much about. She rolled her hand so her palm was facing up and then slide her fingers between his, gently holding his hand as she shut her eyes. Tali tried to use the knowledge Feral was right there beside her, his warmth radiating out from him as they laid so close. She was just about to fall asleep when she heard shuffling.

Her eyes opened again and she saw Feral was squirming slightly in his sleep, his face contorting slightly as he slept. He was having a nightmare…but he'd only had a nightmare the first time they'd slept unless…he wasn't making that much noise. What if Tali just hadn't heard him all of those times? She slowly sat up and cautiously put her hand on his shoulder, she knew he didn't have his knife with him so there was no danger of that.

"Feral….Feral it's just a bad dream" she gently shook him, whispering as she pushed herself onto her knees. "Please Feral it's just me, you're only having a bad dream" she pushed a little hard and this time it worked. Feral woke up and started panting slightly, looking up at Tali as she knelt over him.

His red eyes were open wide as his pupils shifted to the sudden change in light, his breathing still heavy as he rolled onto his back. Tali just sat back onto her knees and watched as Feral recomposed himself.

"Thank you Tali….." lying back completely as he rubbed his hands down his face slowly "Like you said….only a bad dream" his breathing was slowly coming under control.

"You should've told me you were still having nightmares" Tali said sadly "I could've helped you again if you had just told me and you know I would've gladly he-"

Feral had just put his finger over her mouth piece "Or…..you would've worried and then you'd start talking in really long sentences slowly getting faster and faster and more and more worried because that's what you do" he copied her teasingly, smiling gently up at the worried woman. "Tali I didn't want you to worry, I wasn't lashing out and I wasn't letting them get to me." His finger moved and he cupped her cheek gently "I'm sorry I woke you though"

Tali smiled at his response "Bosh'tet, you still could've told me…and you didn't wake me Feral. I couldn't sleep anyway" squirming slightly as she held Feral's hand to her cheek.

This time it was Feral's turn to look worried "Are you ok?" he sat up slowly, his free arm behind him as he propped himself up "Is there anything you'd like to talk about?" pushing his forehead into her visor gently, nuzzling into her helmet and smiling when she nuzzled back.

"No…I was just watching you sleep" Tali purred gently as all her worries evaporated at Feral's touch, a toothless smile adorning her face as they huddled up.

"Well then if just watching didn't help you sleep" Feral gave a toothy grin as he laid back down and patted his chest "You're head right here" his arm nearest to Tali staying in the air as he held open the blanket.

Tali just blushed and stammered slightly "Y-you want me to sleep on you?" she pointed at herself and then Feral who just laughed and nodded back at the woman. "Ok" she purred slightly as she shifted onto Feral's cot.

She laid her head down on the upper part of his chest, her head fitting snuggly into the crook of his neck. She didn't lie directly on top of him but draped herself over Feral's side, one of her arms and legs placed over his. Feral put one of his arms down along her back squeezing her to him as tightly as possible, covering them both in the blanket before intertwining the fingers that lay on his chest with his own.

Tali sighed happily as she felt Feral's chest pushing her up and down in time with his breathing, cuddling into him as much as she could before she heard him speak softly.

"How's this? Do you think you can sleep now?" he gently purred as he laid back, the light woman fitting snuggly into him.

Tali just squeezed him even tighter before responding in a purr "Oh…definitely" she sighed again as she heard Feral snicker quietly "Goodnight Feral"

"Goodnight Tali, sleep well" he sighed as he closed his eyes, the idea of even having a nightmare when his girlfriend was stupid 'I know I will' he silently thought as he fell asleep with a smile on his face. The only sound he could hear over the humming of the Normandy's engine was the slow, steady heartbeat of the happy quarian lying with him.

The Mu Relay was getting over closer, Ilos and Saren would be within their reach soon and the war would be over in the next few hours. But at this moment in time a pair of couples on the Normandy, while they were in various states of clothing, which were cuddled up together as tightly as possible. Until the Mu Relay was within reach nothing else in the universe mattered.


	15. The Dead Planet

Feral and Tali were sleeping peacefully in the engine room until there omni-tools started flashing and beeping, they were set to go off when the ETA to the Mu Relay was at 35 minutes. It'd give them 5 minutes to wake up and then the engineers could come and get the Normandy ready for its stealth run into Ilos.

Slowly the two started to stir, Feral groaned at the noise made by the omni-tool. They were loud and annoying and because he had only just woken up his senses were flying out of control, making them painfully loud until he took control completely.

He was about to sit up when he felt a small amount of weight on top of him, Tali was slowly starting to wake up as she laid on his chest. Slowly pushing herself up onto her elbow but staying next to him. "Well that is a view I could definitely get used to waking up to" Feral purred quietly, still half asleep as they both started to sit up.

Tali stretched her neck slightly by rolling her head around slightly before looking back down at the man she'd fallen asleep on. "Keelah I could get used to all of that! I haven't slept that well in sooo long" that time she stretched out her shoulders, raising her arms in big circles in the air before she collapsed back down onto Feral's chest playfully. "Thank you for letting me sleep on you Feral" she purred happily, rubbing her finger around in small circles on Feral's sternum.

Feral just grinned as she gazed up at him, he could see the dreamy look in her eyes even through the visor "No need to thank me Tali, that was easily the best night's sleep I've had in…..over 4 years. No nightmares nothing…..but I could hear your heartbeat the entire night" he purred at that, the sound had been incredibly comforting "It was wonderful"

Tali just kept smiling and gazing at him dreamily as the warmth rushed to her cheeks yet again, knowing she was having such a huge impact on him just by being there…it was slightly overwhelming. He'd been so troubled, so damaged and broken and now not only was his fear of elevators being conquered but the first time they had slept so close together he hadn't had nightmares. Instead of saying anything she just pushed herself back onto her hands and knees and leant forward, rubbing the top of her visor happily into Feral's forehead.

The two just lay together for a few more moments before Tali quietly said "We need to get up now Feral" she slowly pushed herself away, sitting back up onto her knees. Squeaking in surprise as Feral followed her up and wrapped his arms around her waist, pushing his chin onto her sternum and looking up at her.

"Yeah yeah I know Saren….." he sighed as he turned his head, breathing deeply as the firm sounds of her heart slowly got louder and louder. Letting the noise fill his senses before he leant back and placed a kiss onto her flashing vocal unit. "Let's go get the bastard" he growled slightly as a large grin etched onto his face. Tali matching it inside her visor as they jumped off the bed, Feral quickly putting the pieces of his armour on and the small woman folding away the cots.

Tali smiled back as she watched him dress before she quickly moved the cots into the side rails and unlocking the doors. It wasn't long before the engine room crew was back and prepping the engine for the silent run for the Mu Relay. Tali was back at her terminal and Feral was at his, in full armour he was quickly checking that the systems were as fast as could be. It only took a few minutes of his time but he was satisfied that all the systems were as clean as they were going to be, smirking to himself as he saw the blockers he'd put in place to stop some of Joker's more questionable extranet searches had worked.

He clicked off his terminal and stepped over towards Tali "So how are we doing?"

Tali kept on tapping away at her holographic keyboard before replying playfully "We are doing wonderfully, temperature is slightly raised but within normal parameters. Considering a couple of the couplings got a little close together I'd say that a small raise in temperature is pretty good"

Feral blinked before looking down at her "….Ok so we're still talking about the Normandy right?"

Tali just purred and wiggled her hips slightly as Feral stood close by her "Of course we are but….it doesn't mean that last night wasn't wonderful either"

Feral snickered and grinned down at her as he turned towards her and leant onto the rail next to her terminal "I think I'm having a bad influence on you Ms Zorah" staring back playfully into her eyes as she looked back.

"Oh please, if anything I'm a bad influence on you. Remember I do have a shotgun and just because I'm young doesn't mean that I'm innocent by any measure" she raised an eyebrow at Feral who just laughed in response before standing up.

"Yeah well I should get the results to Shepard, he'd like to know that the Normandy is ready" Feral started walking up towards the back of the ship, before he completely moved away from Tali he left her a parting gift. Grinning to himself as she squeaked from the quick but firm squeeze to her bum; he also noted that she hadn't begun typing again by the time the door had shut behind him.

As he was moving through the cargo bay he noted that both Wrex and Garrus were there, getting all their equipment ready. Garrus working on the final calibrations on the Mako and Wrex cleaning his weapons and armour. Feral just stepped into the elevator giving the pair a nod as they looked over at him, before the door shut in front of him and the elevator slowly started moving.

Again instead of groaning he just hummed to himself as he concentrated on the events with Tali. They kept him calm and it was stopping him from doing his normal ritual, he still noticed that his foot twitched slightly but it was a very good improvement. The trip went much quicker than normal for the man as he stepped out and walked his way around to Shepard's office. He figured he'd still be asleep but it was probably best for him to start waking up now anyway, stepping up to the door he knocked on it firmly and waited.

Eventually the door finally opened and Feral stepped in without even looking up at Shepard as he pulled out the data disk "Sorry if I woke you but we're 15 minutes away from the Mu Relay and I figured you'd want to hear that we're all systems go….." he finally looked up at the last statement and "….you look very awake….." Shepard was still only in a shirt and boxer shorts but he looked wide awake, there was no way he'd just been asleep.

That was when something hit Feral's senses and he jumped slightly at the realisation "Oh god….please….please tell me Liara is in here somewhere because otherwise….you know what I'm not going to even say it" he was holding his noise and it made his voice comically squeaky.

Shepard could only sigh and try to stop his cheeks flushing in embarrassment, Feral had promised not to spy on them with his abilities but he had to admit…the smell was obvious even to him as _they_ hadn't showered yet. "Feral look I didn't expect anyone and I'm sorry you had to find out….like that but yes Liara is in here" Shepard smirked as Feral let out a small sigh of relief.

"Oh thank god….otherwise that'd be…unsanitary" Feral shuddered slightly "Look there's the report, we have 15 minutes before we get there….and for the love of all things holy have a shower" He turned to step out of the room "You both need it" he gagged slightly as he quickly ran out of the room. "Oh but…..congrats….you two are good for each other" he said just before the door shut.

Shepard just started laughing at the whole exchange, Feral must be cursing his overactive senses right now. He looked over to the shower in his room as Liara's head poked around the corner "Did you hear all of that?" he chuckled as the blush on Liara's face grew and she gently nodded.

"Don't worry he won't tell anyone and besides a shower together would be a good idea" he smiled as he walked towards her and pulled her into a close hug, his lover covered in only a blanket.

Liara just smiled through her blush "While I do agree I have to ask what he meant by…..unsanitary?" she raised an eyebrow at John.

"Let's just say that while we're together that really isn't an issue" he snickered at her confused look before they both headed into the shower. They had 15 minutes and 10 would be plenty to have a nice long shower together.

- 10 minutes later, Normandy's Cockpit –

Shepard was walking with Liara to the cockpit where he caught the end of a conversation with Joker and Feral. "Look all I'm saying Joker, other than the fact most of those were completely illegal, all of that data took up a lot of runtime in the Normandy's system."

"Oh come on how much could a couple of terabytes of po-Oh! Hey commander" Joker suddenly changed the subject as he saw Shepard enter the cockpit "Feral and I were just talking about….the Normandy's…..runtimes…." he coughed and sat facing forward again before becoming serious again "We're at 5 minutes ETA to the Mu Relay Commander"

Feral couldn't help but laugh at his console as he was checking the engine's systems quickly "And we are all good across the board for a nice long stealth run" he grinned as he spun around in his seat "So good shower?" he grinned at Shepard and Liara playfully before he tugged at his hair

Shepard realised his hair was still slightly wet and just shook his head slightly "yes thank you Feral, I find it an extremely good way to help me wake up"

Feral just chuckled again "Oh I bet, I love a nice, long _shower_ in the morning" sticking his tongue out at the two as Joker just raised an eyebrow at the pair's strange choice of conversation.

"Anyway…..I'm going to get Pressley up here, we can help us scan for a landing site on Ilos when we come out of the Mu Relay and that way I don't need to worry about doing 5 things at once" Joker sniffed as he cracked his knuckles, the spinning blue light coming into view quickly.

Soon the cockpit was inhabited by 5 of them, Shepard, Liara, Feral and Joker had been joined by Pressley and they were all ready for the jump through the relay. Joker was quiet as he was concentrating on 'shooting them across the galaxy at a target the size of a pin' as he so eloquently put it.

"And we're hitting the relay in 3…..2…..1…contact" The entire Normandy shuddered as it suddenly burst forward as the Mass Relay fired them across space like a cannon. Feral was already engaging the stealth drives and he had Tali on a video link so they could communicate between the two rooms faster than normal. Before too long the ship suddenly lurched forward as they re-entered normal speeds.

The small ship came into space above Ilos, and it was a good thing for the Normandy's stealth drives because the small planet was surrounded by Geth ships. "How we looking Tali? I've got all green on my end for stealth drives" Feral spoke as he immediately got to work along with the engine room crew.

Tali's synthesised voice, even more so due to the video feed, replied quickly back "We're good down here too, unless they look out of a window we're completely hidden"

Shepard nodded at the news "Ok good work people. Pressley scan the surface and see if you can get anything" he turned around to the elder crew man who was sitting on one of the terminals in the corner.

It was a few seconds before Pressley spoke up from the computer "I'm picking up some very strange readings on the surface commander" he kept his eyes on the terminal, tapping away as he tried to decipher them.

Shepard just smiled, strange probably meant Saren "Alright, Joker lock in on those co-ordinates and take us in"

"Negative commander, the nearest landing zone is 2 klicks away" Pressley firmly stated before Joker could do anything

Feral spoke up this time "2 klicks? I'm not even fast enough to make that on foot, we need something closer" he started looking back at his terminal as he joined in on the scanning, trying to look for anything better.

"There is nothing closer! I've looked!" Pressley shouted over at the super soldier, he was being bossed around by the 'nameless' man and it rubbed him slightly the wrong way.

Shepard interjected before the two could start arguing more "Then drop us in the Mako and we'll work our way towards Saren in that. Tali get Garrus and wait for me by the Mako" he looked up at the screen before the quarian nodded and closed the link.

"Commander you can't! You'd need at least 100 metres to pull off a drop like that and the best I can find near Saren is only twenty!" Pressley was getting more and more aggravated, this was quickly becoming suicidal.

Liara spoke up from the corner "But that's insane! There must be a better option" she was doing the calculations quickly in her head, her knowledge on the subject was limited but even she could put 2 and 2 together.

"There isn't one!" Pressley was typing away at the terminal as frantically as he could, sweating slightly as the Normandy quickly got closer and closer to Ilos.

Shepard was about to speak up again but Joker cut him off, calmly stating "I can do it, I can make that drop" he didn't even look up from his terminal, he just spoke slowly as he concentrated.

"Joker?" Shepard raised an eyebrow at the back of the man's head, looking over to Feral who was also just staring at the pilot.

"I can do it Shepard" he stated again, speaking as if it was a matter of fact.

Feral just grinned and looked back at Shepard "He's not lying Shepard, I believe him" he was starting to fidget in his seat slightly, clearly all this excitement was getting to him. Shepard had to wonder if he was picking that habit up from Tali or if he always got like this before a high adrenaline drop.

Shepard matched Feral's grin "Ok then, Joker take us in. Feral get down to the Mako, Liara and I will join you as fast as we can. Tell Wrex and Kaidan that I'm sorry but we can only take a 5 man squad this time" Feral just nodded as he sprinted off down towards the back of the Normandy, heading to the elevator as fast as he could. Garrus and Tali would be waiting in the Mako by now and he'd have to brief them quickly on the insane drop they were about to perform.

"Good luck Shepard, and don't worry about us. I can take care of the Normandy" Joker cracked a smile from his seat as both Liara and Shepard turned and ran to get their armour on. Ilos was fast approaching and they had just over 5 minutes until the drop would be coming. Luckily their armour was easily fitted and before too long they had made it to the cargo hold and had joined the other three in the tank.

Garrus had taken the gunnery seat, Feral and Tali were both sitting in the back and locked in as tightly as possible. Liara joined them in the back as Shepard quickly moved to the driver's position, strapping himself in as tightly as possible. This was going to be a very sharp, hard drop and they all had to be strapped down as tightly as possible to prevent injury. Feral had even put a helmet on because he didn't want to have his head smashed into the sides of his seat from the quick descent.

The inside of the Mako was silent, save for the deep controlled breathing of all of its occupants as they waited for the elevator ride into hell. The tension in the wait was unbearable and eventually Feral just sighed, looking around at everyone in their locked seats. "So….what are everyone's plans for this evening?" the moment he had thrown his question out, the Mako suddenly roared into life as it was shot straight out of the cargo bay.

Everyone was bolted right back into their seats as the g forces of the drop rapidly increased. On the ground, Saren Arterius just watched in quiet surprise as he watched the Normandy fly overhead, dropping the small tank straight towards him and his company of Geth. He ordered them to keep moving, the door was already shutting and he'd left plenty of Geth between it and the controls. Even if the Geth couldn't stop Shepard, they'd slow him down enough for him to reach the conduit.

From his seat in the drivers position Shepard could see Saren moving right in front of him, the bastard was right there but until the Mako landed and the VI handed over control he couldn't do anything but glare back at the turian as they hurtled towards the ground. Joker's drop had been perfect, the mako's VI kicked in the boosters that quickly decelerated the tank as it hit the surface. The suspension taking a lot of the force out of the sudden stop but the steep descent made everyone inside jolt downwards.

Shepard was groaning at the sudden stop but his eyes widened slightly as he watched the door in front of him finally shut completely, he unlocked his seating straps and turned around to the rest of his team. They all looked a little sore from the drop and Feral had taken his helmet off before unlocking the dropping straps across his chest. "Everything ok Shepard?" he finally asked, panting slightly as he cracked his neck.

Shepard just nodded before saying "We need to dismount, Saren just went through the door ahead of us and we need to get through it. I don't think guns will get through it but Saren found a way through"

"So we find the control room and then Feral and I can figure out how to open it?" Tali asked, she was getting a hold of herself and had unstrapped herself as well. Liara was in the same sort of position and he could hear Garrus moving above him.

"That's the plan, so everyone make sure you're good to move" Shepard clambered out of his chair and moved towards the hatch, pushing it open "and then let's go" he jumped out of the Mako closely followed by Feral who was opposite the hatch. Then Tali and Liara jumped out before finally Garrus wormed his way out of the gunnery position and out of the mako.

The group spent a second just looking around at the alien world, most of them checking their weapons quickly and Feral was sliding his recon hood over his head. Liara was especially entranced as she was surrounded by basically untouched Prothean ruins until her trance was broken by Shepard "Ok we need to get moving, time is of the essence."

The rest of the team started heading up in the opposite direction of the door, Feral leading the small group as Shepard walked over to Liara "Liara, I promise we can come back and look at this place when this is all finished with" he put a hand on her shoulder and she just nodded. The two's heads suddenly snapped over as the sound of gunfire started beating out through the silence. They quickly raced off to join up with the rest of the team who were already neck deep in Geth activity.

Shepard and Liara managed to join up with Garrus as he hid behind a large rectangular rock, Feral and Tali were slightly more forward and holding the Geth at bay with rifle and shotgun fire combined with their overloads. Shepard told Liara and Garrus to stay back, Garrus would use his sniper rifle and Liara would provide barrier and general biotic support from the rear. He then bolted forward when Feral sprayed a quick burst into the nearest Geth troopers, taking one down for good and forcing the other to take cover.

Feral was knelt down as Shepard slid into cover between him and Tali, "Nice of you to join us Shepard" he grinned playfully as he practically screamed 'You can make out with Liara later' with the look on his face. Shepard was about to respond but the boom of Tali's shotgun and the synthetic screech interrupted him, kicking him back into his combat zone.

"Yeah I thought so too, now what do we have?" the question was open to the two, he would've asked Garrus but seeing as they were in a forward position they probably had a better grasp. He tried peeking up over the rock but immediately ducking again as a few shots zipped over him and ricocheted off the stone.

Feral watched as Shepard dropped back down before quickly firing another burst, this time Tali joined him and their combined fire took down another Geth platform before they both dropped back down. A sniper rifle shot flying overhead and taking a shield less platform's head off. "We have several Geth platforms and honestly at this point those aren't the issue. The issue are those armatures over there" he gestured to a small position ahead of them, where Shepard could see the two war machines folded up "They're clearly waiting for us to get closer before becoming activated….or until we take a shot at them, either way they'll be a pain"

Shepard nodded as Feral quickly brought him up to speed, in the slight lull of fire he could hear Garrus doing the same for Liara. "Ok then, we take out the smaller platforms and then we deal with the armatures" the two in the forward position just nodded, he'd let Garrus figure it out for himself. "But for now I want you to get closer Feral, push up as much as you can and Tali and I will keep them from flanking you" Feral nodded and waited for Shepard and Tali to give him the long sustained suppressive fire so he could scramble ahead.

Feral just took slow deep breaths until eventually the return of fire came from the two next to him, a few sniper rounds flying over his head, glaring at Garrus as he followed the streaks through the air back to him. The moment his second long glare was finished he rolled off to the side and sprinted forward into the next stone a little further ahead, a few shots bouncing off his shields until his shoulder came forcefully into contact with the stone.

Shepard watched as Feral made into the cover ahead of them, he quickly lost sight of Feral though as he snuck off to the side. He just smiled as the sudden burst of fire from the side hit the Geth off guard, most of the platforms fell down immediately and the others were forced out into the open. Garrus and Tali were quick off the mark and finished them off, unlikely for the group. The moment the last Geth dropped the armatures suddenly whirred into life.

Every member of the group opened fire, doing as much damage on the machines as they could before the heavy fire came back at them. Feral slid back into cover as quickly as he could, getting as low as possible behind the small stone near him. "Shepard! If you can take out their shields and hold their gaze on you I can take care of them!" he screamed over the constant machine gun fire and occasional pulse of their main weapon. He had a plan and it was probably going to be a little bit painful.

Shepard eventually heard his shout and Tali clearly got the message as she started throwing overloads as fast as she could, Liara joined in with warps and singularities, ebbing away the strength of the war machines shielding as they kept hitting at them over and over. Eventually the armatures were solely focused on the group of 4 and before too long, the closest one's shields had collapsed.

Feral took that as his opportunity, the shields on those things regenerated faster than he could so he had to be quick. He sprinted towards the armature and before it'd even registered his proximity he had dropped to his knee and slid underneath the machine. Grenade in hand he punched through the under armour, priming the grenade and then leaving It deep inside the platforms machinery. He then quickly brought his hand back out and rolled onto his front, covering his head as he waited for the explosion.

Tali just watched the resulting explosion, she'd watched Feral take things out in stupid ways before; tackling a juggernaut at full speed, letting her shoot a Geth via his own head. This was the most insane so far, luckily for Feral the explosion went up and outward, not down, the armour doing little to shield the Geth from the explosion from within. She winced a little though when she watched the heavy platform crash down onto Feral, with his strength he'd be fine but she was sure it'd still hurt.

The remaining armature wasn't sure what to think, on the one side it had a group of combatants and on the other it had a soldier that had just destroyed its partner, and the human was trapped. It decided to take its chance, either way it was probably going to lose so it was going to take at least one of them with it.

However the moment it turned away, Liara and Tali knocked out its shield and the high powered round from Garrus' rifle ripped right through the side of its head. It didn't outright kill it but it knocked out its optics, leaving it circling around in confusion and firing wildly. Shepard finished it off with a H.E grenade, removing its head entirely before it finally crumbled down to the floor, sparks flying from its joints as the systems overloaded slightly.

For now the Geth threat was dealt with and Shepard and the rest of his team moved out of cover, slowly making their way forward as the armature on top of Feral was thrown off to the side. The super human quickly bouncing up to his feet and jogging over to the main group. "Why is it I always end up covered in Geth goo?" he shook his hand, trying to get as much of it off as possible

Shepard just laughed as Garrus and Liara headed off first before he followed after them, Tali just slowly walked off "Maybe it's because you enjoy getting so up close and personal with them so much"

She could see Feral grinning as they brought up the rear for the squad as they moved on, weaving their way around the structure. "I didn't hear you complaining about how up close and personal I can get earlier" he jogged ahead before Tali could respond, blushing inside her helmet as she remembered what he did that morning. Gripping her shotgun as she grumbled to herself, she really wasn't that mad about it but still, it was a good thing he was so carefree it made it almost impossible to be mad at him. That and the resounding sound of more gun fire just up ahead.

The following fire fights posed little threat to the quickly advancing group, the ground was more in their favour and the Geth probably hadn't expected them to make it this far. Tali and Feral's technical prowess proved invaluable and Garrus was helping out to a lesser extent, the turian was the best marksman in the group but he also had a limited amount of technical expertise as well. Liara's biotics were incredibly useful for slowing the advance of the synthetics or permanently freezing the annoying hoppers so they could be picked off by gunfire or by Feral's annoyed fist tearing out their circuitry.

The courtyard was big and had plenty of cover in the form of pillars and sheer rock faces strewn about it, but the team quickly stormed through. At this point simple Geth platforms weren't really an issue. Eventually after a few minutes of fighting they made their way into an elevator carved into the side of the rock, it even made a grinding noise as it moved down diagonally.

Feral sighed playfully "So even the Protheans had elevators…..would it really kill anyone to have stairs?"

Shepard turned and raised an eyebrow at Feral "I thought you'd gotten over your elevator thing Feral" tilting his head subtly towards Tali

"More or less, I'm not going to smash my head into the wall anytime soon….but I'd still prefer stairs" he smirked back at Shepard "Besides stairs don't need power, and this place is clearly still using it so…..guess we're nearly at whatever passes for a command centre" he was hypothesising but it made sense. Their scans of the ruins had indicated this was the last area that was easily accessible and it was reached by an elevator. The key to opening the door blocking the mako must be close ahead.

The elevator ride was quick enough though and as soon as it came to a halt Feral lead the way, edging around the corner before heading up the narrow corridor that opened out into a larger room. Liara and Tali were following close behind him, the biotic putting a barrier up around the point man just on the off chance and Tali ready to hit whatever popped out with everything she had. Garrus and Shepard would then rush forward and open fire.

It wasn't until Feral reached the end of the hallway though until anything popped up, several Geth platforms including a couple of destroyers. Feral instantly charged ahead to get into the closest piece of cover he could, throwing a grenade and an overload at the closest destroyer as he slid into the stone cover.

Shepard and Garrus ran ahead of the two women, who were currently in a support role throwing whatever powers they could to slow down the Geth advance, but they couldn't make it all the way to Feral's position. They both started to take pot shots at the Geth whenever they could, neither side able to put down a constant stream of fire. Instead there were exchanges of gun fire rapidly taking place, but the Geth were losing platforms rapidly.

It took a few minutes but Shepard finally noticed that Feral had disappeared from the cover ahead of them, he couldn't see the man but he saw the stone lead off towards the side and Shepard figured he must have been crawling into a flanking position. He would've preferred Feral had given him a signal but after all this time with the soldier he just figured that whatever he was going to do, it'd probably wipe the Geth out.

Tha being said, he didn't expect what happened next. An armature suddenly rose up from the position where he suspected Feral was currently in cover. Of the very many things Feral was, careless wasn't one of them. Shepard couldn't believe that he'd set off an armature trap especially because not even 30 minutes ago he'd so easily spotted them. Apparently Garrus had figured out everything Shepard had because he heard the eagle eyed turian groan "Damn…I hope Feral has a plan for that thing"

Before Shepard could even reply the armature opened fire, straight into the advancing Geth platforms. Who were just surprised as the rest of Shepard's team was, Tali and Liara had taken the opportunity that the strange action of the war machine had provided to move up into position.

"Tali! What is going on?" Shepard shouted towards the quarian as the war machine fired pulse after pulse into the retreating Geth.

Before she even had time to answer, Feral bolted across the courtyard with his recon hood in his hand. "You will never guess what I found!" he shouted as he ran sideways past the wide eyed group, laughing as he slide back out of view. All 4 of squad members in cover just sat there in silent until another armature rose up and again started firing into the Geth. The last destroyer didn't stand a chance as two pulse rounds ripped its armour apart, the last few platforms being chased down by the lumbering machines.

Shepard just shook his head as Feral sauntered back into the middle of the courtyard, his rifle slung up onto his shoulder as he watched the mayhem unfold in front of him. Shepard stood up and slid over the cover, approaching the super soldier and standing next to him "You could've given us a head's up Feral" he glared slightly at the super soldier but had to admit, using the Geth to fight the Geth was a stroke of genius and slightly hilarious especially after all the trouble the machines had given them.

Feral just awww'd "Oh come one Shepard, after all this time…hacking an armature or two is the least insane thing I've done" he grinned playfully as Tali eventually came up to his other side and slugged him in the arm "Ow! What was that for?"

"For worrying me you bosh'tet!" she grumbled to herself as she stormed off, shooting a Geth platform to 'make sure' it was dead.

"Did you do something to annoy her? Of all the people in the universe I wouldn't want to annoy, it'd be her" Shepard laughed as he walked off after the quarian leaving Feral standing there, wondering if he actually had annoyed her with his actions earlier. It was only when Garrus slapped him in the back and told him that hacking an armature was brilliant that he snapped out of it.

Eventually the entire team worked their way up into the upper level of the building at the end of the underground courtyard, a small room overlooking the recent battlefield was pretty much empty save a few security panels. Shepard walked up and the door controls were immediately obvious, he hit the controls and turned to step away before something flickered next to him.

"What is that? "Liara stared at the stuttering hologram; no one could understand a word it was saying until she saw Shepard's eyes. "John….can you understand what it's saying?"

Shepard just nodded before answering the next question was asked "I guess I can understand it because of the Prothean beacons, it's all broken up but it's a warning." He sighed "A warning about the reaper invasion"

"Anything useful?" Garrus clicked from the back of the group

Shepard just shook his head "Something about the conduit, but at this point the only thing we can do is get after Saren and stop him from using it" there was a collective nod in the group and he could see Feral grinning before they all started sprinting back towards the Mako. Double timing it all the way back to the tank, the once sealed doors now wide open. The group leapt back into the tank and took their positions again, strapping in as the tank roared into life and straight down the now open causeway.

Feral, Tali and Liara were sitting in the back, expecting a hail of gunfire to immediately hit them but to the occupant's pleasant surprise nothing happened as they rumbled down the water logged road. "Here I was expecting an army of Geth to be waiting for us" Feral smiled to himself as he tapped away at the terminal he'd swung out in front of him. Both he and Tali were keeping the shields up and watching out for the mako's systems.

Feral stopped smiling when Garrus called up from the gunnery position "Oh I'm sure there's one waiting for us Feral, we just haven't hit it yet" you could hear the turian smiling and Feral just muttered something under his breath as the rumbling of the wheels covered his words.

Liara was the next to start talking, she was peeking at Feral's screen and she could see a camera shot on the holographic screen "What are those things on the wall?"

"I think they are stasis pods, Protheans must have tried to survive by freezing themselves" Tali said, she'd obviously been curious herself and done a quick scan on them "But….the systems are dead and so are the beings within them" she sighed, this place was completely dead.

"What was Saren hoping to find in this place?" Liara asked, the idea of a living Prothean had excited her but then to immediately discover they were all dead had downed her spirits all at the same time.

Shepard shouted from up ahead "To find the Conduit, and that's exactly why we are here too. Just remember that" his eyes were constantly pointed ahead as he tried to figure out where this path was taking them.

The mako just kept on rolling; the water over the road was making a constant splashing noise that they could all hear. Occasionally the thumping of the machine gun could be heard but they never encountered anything but a couple of Geth platforms at a time, the tank was never in any danger and clearly Saren had been in far too much of a hurry to set up any sort of trap. 'Good' Shepard thought to himself, clearly Saren considered him a threat after Virmire. After they had blown up his base and he'd talked to the deluded turian himself.

Shepard swore he could see something in the distance, they had gone done a couple of inclines and now in the distance of yet another straight piece of road. He swore he could see a blue light. "Garrus, can you see that up ahead?" he heard the turian reply, but he had no idea what it was. All they knew is that it was a large and blue. It wasn't until they got up close to it and stopped in front of it that Shepard realised what it was. A force field, Saren must have erected it.

Shepard sighed, this trumped an ambush. An ambush they could destroy but a force field. Especially one of this size was a problem, it stopped them dead in their tracks before Garrus piped up from his vantage point. "Shepard there's a door over there. I have no idea where it goes but at this point it can't be a bad thing to check out" Shepard nodded and ordered Garrus and Liara to dismount. Feral and Tali would stay behind, they could keep the shields and long range scanners running and if any trouble did survive Garrus' trigger finger; Feral could take care of it.

Feral just watched the three of them file out of the Mako before wishing them good luck, pulling the hatch shut behind them and then watching the three file through the door. He then sat back down in his chair and before he pulled his terminal in front of him he looked over at Tali and sighed "Tali….did I annoy you by groping you this morning?"

Tali looked back at him before sighing herself, folding her terminal off to the side so they could both keep one eye on the sensor. "It's not that you did it Feral, I did enjoy it it's just that….you did it in front of the entire crew. I mean…what if one of them had seen and told Shepard he could've forced us to stop it all and we've only just become something and I didn't " it wasn't the first time she'd seen Feral with his 'stop talking you adorable rambler you' face, she glared at him "What? It's true!"

Feral just laughed and sat back into his seat "Tali really don't worry about Shepard. For one I'm pretty sure he already knows that we're getting…..closer mainly because of the elevator thing AND! After I walked in on him and Liara this morning there's nothing he can say to make us stop what we're doing" he pushed his tongue out playfully, it wasn't aimed at Tali but at the second thing he'd just said.

Tali just blushed behind her helmet as her eyes went wide open "You did what?...wait...walked in on them…while they were…" her own blush stopped her from finishing the sentence.

Feral chuckled as he could practically see the blush on her face "No they had finished but…but they had definitely been…..mingling" he smiled as he remembered the teasing back in Flux "But keep that between us, he won't be mad I told you if he finds out but just…keep that between us" he chuckled as Tali was still trying to get the image out of her hand.

Eventually she just managed to nod and Feral smiled gently at her "Thank you, Shepard wouldn't kill me but then….you know how hard it is to actually kill me" again his smile adorned his face before he continued "and I'm sorry for doing what I did in front of the crew Tali. I won't do it unless it's just us in the future" he smiled gently and put a hand on Tali's knee, giving it a small squeeze as they sat in silence in the mako.

Tali's blush subsided as a smile appeared on her face as well, Feral had an ability to instantly calm her just by smiling kindly. His eyes and his smile were just so comforting to the woman. "Thank you Feral….I'm just not used to….such a relationship yet that's all" she put her hand down onto his and just squeezed it back gently. She squeaked as he grabbed her hand and pulled her up and out of her seat, plopping her down into his lap and wrapping his arms around her waist as the side of her body pushed into his chest.

Feral's eyes were instantly staring into hers as she sank down into his lap slowly before she just accepted it and leaned into him "Feral….not that I mind but what if Shepard gets back and finds us like this?" she looked up at him from within her helmet.

Feral just smiled and then pulled the terminal in front of them "Long range scanner will detect any movement and! The camera is pointed at the door, as long as we pay attention we'll see them coming way before they knock on the door." He raised his eyebrows before he smiled again, this time Tali couldn't argue with that and she just cuddled into him. "Tali don't worry about anything ok? This is my first real relationship and…..I just couldn't resist this morning, you did say something very cheeky" he stuck his tongue out playfully and made her blush as she remembered what she had said "But if cuddling up like this when no one else is around that is more than ok with me" he purred gently as he rubbed his forehead against her visor.

Tali was beaming within her helmet at his words, how'd she gotten so lucky to find someone who could both tear a Geth in half and be so kind? She just cupped his cheek gently and stroked his skin with her thumb, "Thank you Feral…thank you for everything" she pulled his head closer to hers and pressed his lips into her vocal unit. She just watched as the man closed his eyes and felt him push into her a little more, squeezing her eyes shut and biting her lip at their 'kiss'.

The two just sat inside the mako, squeezed up as close together as possible. Taking turns to look at the monitor as they watched for the Geth or Shepard. Tali then shifted slightly as she sat on Feral's lap, looking out through the front of the mako, the force field had just turned off and then three dots appeared on the long range scanner. Feral just whined playfully and hit his head back against the mako's interior "Damn…I was enjoying this, hunting Saren has nothing on cuddling my shotgun toting girlfriend but I guess…duty calls huh?"

Tali just giggled slightly at that as she wiggled off his legs, hunched over inside the vehicle she cupped both of his cheeks before nuzzling against his forehead "Then let's get the bosh'tet and we can carry on where we left off" smiling happily as she retook her seat and pulled the terminal back in front of her. Eventually the hatch opened and the three shuffled into the mako as fast as possible.

"Have fun you two?" Garrus chuckled as he stepped back up into the gunnery position.

Feral laughed back at the turian "Oh you have no idea, we had such a rave. There was strobe lighting and dancers…" he trailed off as he glared at the turian playfully "Seriously though we had nothing up hear; only activity was you three. So how was your outing Shepard?" he looked over at the commander who was jumping into the driver's seat.

"Oh you know….talked to a Prothean VI called Vigil, turned off a force field, discovered the conduit is a back door to the Citadel and the keepers were reaper puppets designed to start the reaper invasion…..so I guess you did have more fun raving" before Feral or Tali could even start to respond he slammed onto the accelerator as they headed towards the conduit as fast as they could. Saren had probably already gone through the back door into the citadel with an army of Geth, they had to hurry.

The ride was largely the same as the road before the force field, the path was bumpier and because Shepard didn't have time to spare the mako was rocking all over the place. Large drops of rock faces and a couple of Geth made it a very bumpy ride, again it was nothing they couldn't handle. Feral, Tali and Liara had taken the liberty to lock themselves in place as if they were in the middle of a drop, it was stopping them from being ejected from their seats.

Feral and Tali were typing away and shouting the locations of the few, scattered Geth forces up to Garrus as fast as they could whilst Shepard drove like a bat out of hell. Eventually the ratting of the gun stopped and the mako lurched to a halt, everyone in the mako stared out of the driver's window. In the distance was a shimmering blue light, it looked exactly like a mass relay only a lot smaller. The Conduit, it was in sight along with several Geth armatures and colossi.

"Garrus shoot everything you have at them, Feral and Tali put all power into the shielding and try to keep it stable and Liara….just hold on tight" he ordered forcefully as he pushed the mako onward down the diagonal path towards the blue light. The Mako rocked from the force of the landing as the tank flew down onto the courtyard in front of the conduit, followed by machine gun fire pinging off the metal and the occasional pulse shaking it from side to side.

Luckily for Shepard, the combined efforts of Feral and Tali kept the mako in one piece and Garrus was annoying enough with the gun to at least distract the Geth for a little while. He kept on driving straight towards the conduit, taking the fastest route towards it before finally the light over took them. The roar of a mass relay coated the tank and everyone inside it just held onto the seating with all of their might as they were fired all the way across the galaxy towards the citadel. They were hot on Saren's tail now, it was only a matter of time before they had him in their crosshairs.


	16. The Battle of the Citadel

Only two Geth platforms were left in the presidium, Saren's army had moved on and pushed the plan into full effect. The citadel fleet was coming under heavy attack from Geth forces and even though the Destiny Ascension had managed to evacuate the council the second a threat had been perceived, it was now under heavy attack from the Geth armada.

The two platform's only directive was to guard the elevator if, on the off chance that he succeeded, Shepard and his team showed up. The only sounds in the war torn citadel were the stuttered ramblings of the malfunctioning Avina until all of a sudden the conduit within the presidium started vibrating. The gyroscope began to spin and the glow became steadily larger and larger, the two platforms approached cautiously. Waiting for the disorientated organics to appear out of the glow, only to come face to face with a large white tank.

They only had time to let out a synthetic screech before the vehicle hurtled into their platforms, crushing them completely under its weight before it flipped over and crashed into the wall opposite the mass relay 'monument'. For a short while the citadel returned to its previous state before the hatch of the Mako was kicked open and Feral rolled out onto his back.

Groaning before he rolled and slowly picked himself up off the floor, helping Tali and Liara to their feet as they crawled out after him. The three stood in the presidium just taking in the sights and sounds, the alarm blaring out, the normal day light replaced by a burning orange glow "Guess Saren's been here for a while then" Feral sighed before laughing as he noticed the two flattened Geth platforms "well at least Shepard's driving got a couple of them at least"

As soon as Shepard and Garrus had wormed their way of the upside down mako and up onto their feet, the unfolded their weapons and slowly headed towards Avina. They could see the dragon's teeth ahead and the husks impaled up on top of the spikes, but they were being careful in case any more Geth platforms were left in hiding.

Luckily for them the husks were the only thing waiting for them and they were easily dispatched by the 5 man squad. Tali had taken one of them down with a carefully placed shotgun blast as it ran towards her and Feral had taken the other two. Grabbing them by the necks as they both ran towards him before slamming them down into the floor, his fist turning their heads into synthetic pate before he stood up again.

Whilst the two techs had taken swift care of their attackers Shepard had stepped up to Avina, it was clearly malfunctioning or at least something was playing havoc with its systems. But it could still provide information on their current predicament, and maybe even where Saren was. He noted that Tali, Feral and Garrus had stepped off towards the elevator, it was the one that lead to the council chambers and regardless of Avina's information. He'd bet his bottom dollar that's where Saren was going to be.

"The presidium is experiencing severe system malfunctions across the entire level. All non-emergency personnel must evacuate immediately." the hologram was speaking surprisingly clearly considering the image was glitching like mad.

"Give me a status report on the damage" Shepard just said as clearly as he could to the VI, he had no idea if it'd even be able to hear him.

"We have lost all primary power to the level. Environmental controls are not responding. Class 3 fires are burning in sectors 2, 3, 6 and 7. Civilian casualties are high." The VI responded "I am also detecting numerous unauthorized synthetic life forms throughout the station. They are believed to be hostile. Please approach with caution"

Shepard didn't even have time to respond before Garrus and Feral laughed from behind. "Please approach with caution? That's Avina's advice for handling the Geth?" he turian clicked in amusement at the ridiculous comment. The pair of them both shut up when they noticed Tali glaring at them playfully.

"Just think of it like this, the more cautious we are. The more likely we are to get them by surprise, and then they get a shotgun shell through the chest." She purred out as she, pretty much, caressed her weapon.

Feral just shrugged before smirking as he tried to push back the fact that Tali had yet again been accidentally sexy, although part of him wondered if she did this on purpose. Garrus just chuckled again as Liara and Shepard came up to join them.

"How are we doing?" the commander asked to them and was answered by the elevator sinking down and the doors opening. "I don't even know why I bother asking when it comes to you two hacking things" he just shrugged in defeat

Feral blinked as he looked back at Shepard "…if by hacking you mean I pushed this button and waited for the elevator to come down…then….sure I hacked the hell out of this thing" he rolled his eyes and grinned as he stepped into the box.

Shepard just stared blankly at the back of his head before he looked over to Tali who just shrugged and giggled and stepped in after Feral. "…I give up with you two" he growled slightly in defeat as the rest of the group filed into the elevator the door shutting behind them.

"If you want commander I can hack it again and get us moving" Feral grinned at the back of Shepard's head before the commander pushed the button "Hey! I didn't know you were a tech specia-Ow! Damn it Tali" he laughed as the quarian smacked him on the back of the head, who just smiled sweetly back at him.

As the elevator moved up, despite the seriousness of their situation, all 5 of the team started laughing. Shepard couldn't help but think that it was the little things that were keeping them going; laughing like this was good for them all. It kept them sane, stopped them from ever becoming like Saren.

Meanwhile in the space around the citadel, the arms of the station began to close. The Ships within its reach moving out and engaging the Geth ships with everything they had, they had to stop any ships entering the citadel. The order rang out to all ships in the vicinity but it wasn't the geth warships that were the problem. Sovereign was barrelling down and shunted its way past anything and everything that stood in the Reaper's path. The Reaper made its way into the citadel just as the station locked close, heading towards the citadel tower and latching onto it. Now it had to do was co-ordinate its efforts with Saren to reverse the signal blocker, the Reaper invasion was imminent.

The elevator kept on moving, the laughter had died out and the entire team was checking their gear. For once Feral was thankful for the long elevator ride, it gave them all time to be ready for whatever Saren had waiting for them at the top. However the ride came to a sudden halt, the squad buckling slightly as the halted ride stopped. Shepard just turned around and looked at Feral. "Can you get us moving again?"

Feral lit up his omni tool and quickly cut away at the panel in the elevator, ripping the metal sheet open and letting the entire wiring tumble out. He worked at it for about a minute before shaking his head and looking up "Sorry Shepard, we are totally locked out. Saren must be controlling the station's systems and I can't override him from here"

Shepard sighed and thought for a moment "Well then…guess we're going outside" he waited for everyone to get their breather helmets in place, specifically him, Liara and Garrus. Feral and Tali were both already behind their hoods and when they were already he raised his pistol up to the glass.

Three rounds flew through the glass shattering it instantly and plunging them all into the silence of the slight atmosphere surrounding the citadel. They could still hear each other and the surroundings but there wasn't a breathable atmosphere, hence suiting up. Shepard was the first to take the plunge into the zero gravity environment, floating out slightly before his magnetic boots drew him down to the side of the tower. He was quickly followed by the rest of his squad.

"Whoa….." it was all Feral could muster when he spotted Sovereign in the distance, latched onto the top of the council tower "that….that is a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be"

Shepard just smiled back at the awed super human "Well it's a good thing we're only going after Saren….for now" he cocked his head as he unfolded his rifle, moving up along the side of the elevator lines.

The squad was moving as quickly up the tower as they could, Saren was within reach and they had an invasion to stop. A few Geth popping out of elevators were barely able to stop them. By this point the team had gelled together well, moving quickly and precisely. Each member covering the other and with Tali and Feral leading the group, they were ripping their way through whatever Saren sent at them.

The team kept moving quickly along the elevator lines, Geth platforms swarming towards them intermittently. They were slowing them down slightly, but the group kept pushing on. Moving up from cover to cover as they fired at the Geth units. Screeching filled the air as the well placed firing tore the machines apart. Shepard was commanding the unit even more effectively than he ever had, the drive to stop Saren pushing him to be better than he'd ever been.

He'd split the team into three separate squads. Feral and Tali were the vanguard, pushing up as fast as they could and hitting the platforms with their technical expertise and assault weapons as hard as they could. Behind them were Shepard and Liara, sitting in a supporting role as Liara knocked platforms back or put barriers up around the forward unit. Shepard was putting rounds over their heads, keeping their flanks clear so they could keep going. Then finally at the rear was Garrus, the sniper was hanging back and making sure that nothing crawled up their asses and then taking shots at units far ahead of the forward position.

Not even Krogan and the larger Geth platforms were really slowing the team down, their shields being almost instantly removed by the combined efforts of Feral and Tali. Garrus' sniper rifle effectively took the organic being's heads clean off and anything that got close enough to Feral instantly regretted it as his knife drove straight into the most important parts of their being. The first real challenge they came up against was the sudden appearance of a Geth drop ship. Shepard lost sight of Tali and Feral, they'd moved up ahead of them and by the time they'd caught up the troops pouring out of the ship had started firing at them.

Feral and Tali were skirting their way along the cover they had found, they could both see the geth shooting at Shepard's location but unfortunately for them the rest of the team were pinned. "Crap…..so Geth drop ship and a ton of the metal bosh'tets….any ideas?" Feral smirked playfully from behind his hood as he looked at Tali.

Tali was peeking around the corner of the cover and saw a turret in front of her, she then turned back to Feral and spoke as clearly as she could over the gun fire "You remember that thing you did with the armatures on Ilos?" Feral just nodded as he tilted his head slightly, wondering where she was going with that. "Do you think you could do something with that?" she jerked her thumb around the corner.

Feral just crawled around and peeked in the direction of her thumb before grinning as he sat in front of her "Oh yeah, I reckon I can do a lot with that. Good catch Tali" he patted her shoulder as he moved as low to the ground as he could as he moved towards the turret. Tali followed after him, luckily for the pair the Geth were far more interested in the rest of Shepard's team and they were yet to be detected.

Shepard was shouting orders across to Garrus, trying as hard as they could to get a bead on the Geth platforms, wave upon wave of the machines dropping out of the drop ship. His shouts were suddenly interrupted by the load explosion, the fireball surrounding the ship. The sudden boom took even the Geth by surprise and a few rounds of assault rifle from the side put a permanent end to some of them.

Rocket after rocket shot out of the turret and impacted straight into the hull of the ship, the sustained impacts causing the drop ship to quickly retreat. That combined with the flanking fire from Feral gave Shepard his opportunity, diving forward from cover he put a few rounds into the platforms ahead of him before sliding into the foremost position. Liara had followed him and a singularity had given Garrus all the opportunity he needed to disintegrate the plating with his high powered rifle.

The battle was over faster than any of them could have anticipated; the turret had been invaluable in ensuring it had been their victory. Shepard could see Feral and Tali high fiving as they stood up from their side position, making their way over towards the exit of the small courtyard. The rest of the squad quickly moved up to their position. "Good work with the turret you two" Shepard said to the pair who looked very happy with themselves behind their masks.

Feral and Tali sat back as the rest of the team took point as Shepard wanted them to get a breather. They'd move with Garrus and provide support for Shepard and Liara. Even with the new position the team moved just as effectively, Tali had to switch to her pistol but she could still throw overloads into the Geth forces. The Krogan proved a little more of a challenge with Feral at the back but Liara's warps and throws managed to keep the reptiles from getting close enough to them.

"That….is why I hate biotics" Feral just sighed from the position behind him, chuckling slightly under his own breath as his rifle thumped against his shoulder and one of the floating Krogan cried out before it died.

Garrus just shook his head as his rifle put a shot straight into the other floating krogan "You're not scared of Liara are you?" even behind his helmet you could hear his mandible's flaring in amusement.

Feral just laughed as the three of them ran up behind Shepard and Liara, moving as quickly along the path parallel to the elevator as they had before the Geth ship "Me scared?...nah, the only thing I'm scared of is Tali's shotgun" he laughed and he could hear the woman giggle from ahead of him.

"Just don't ever me a reason to aim at it either of you." She purred playfully as they ran along "Not that there is much chance of you doing that Feral…..Garrus however…." leaving her sentence purposefully hanging as both Feral and herself laughed even louder. Garrus just chuckled nervously; something about the Quarian's tone told him she was only just joking.

Shepard's team was moving as fast as they could, rapidly progressing up the side of the council tower. Sovereign's looming arms kept getting bigger and bigger in the distance. They were practically sprinting constantly as they moved; covering arcs of gun fire meant that any enemy soldiers were cut down within moments of breaking cover. It wasn't until they reached the next courtyard that they faced a small problem.

There was a line of automated turrets; they'd been hacked by the Geth and were firing rockets straight at the team. But even then, they provided little resistance to the oncoming storm of the Spectre's squad. Feral and Tali took out the shields protecting them within moments and then Garrus' rifle put several large rounds into the turrets, shattering the protective plating and destroying any capability it had to fire at them. Once the turrets were gone it only left Geth platforms and rolling war machine of Shepard's squad destroyed them easily.

This courtyard was the last one they had to cross, the squad moving back down an incline towards the path running alongside the elevator. Ahead of the team was the end of the track and as they got closer and closer they saw the hatch on the floor of the walkway. The group huddled around the square trap door before Shepard looked around

"This leads to the council chambers. Feral and I will take point, Liara and Tali I want you in support behind us and Garrus you do what you do best. Once we get up the stairs it splits off into two sides. Feral and Liara you go down the right, Tali and I will take the left" he looked around his squad and saw them give a collective nod, the split made sense. Shepard wanted a tech specialist on either side to combat the Geth.

"Ok then" he reached down and grabbed the release catch before pulling open the trap door "Let's finish this once and for all" he tore open the panel and dropped down. Landing in an elevator already at the top of the council tower, the door was open and he moved forward out of the box. Tali followed him down, then Feral, Liara and finally Garrus.

The groups moving off up towards the stairs ahead of them, hugging them side of the walkway before they split around the circular pond in the first courtyard. They'd all been expecting immediate resistance but it wasn't until they were halfway around the pond that the first Geth popped up from the top of the stairs. One warp from Liara and an overload from Tali disrupted the Geth enough for Feral and Shepard to disable the units with a quick squeeze of their triggers. Sending a sharp and hard burst straight into the chest of the units, the recoil of the rifle's sending the last few rounds up into the Geth's heads.

The team kept on moving, converging back together again when they approached the stairs before breaking up when the stair way had a row of potted trees in the middle of it. This time the moment they hit the top of the stairs they were hit by a quick burst of fire from across the second courtyard. Feral and Shepard sprinted off to the sides, sitting in the cover that the passages to the side provided.

The three non-humans were stuck on the stair well, sitting on the upper steps and popping up whenever they could to throw a power or fire off a few quick shots. Garrus had gotten lucky a few times, the Geth shielding couldn't do much when a sniper round hit dead on. The three were finally able to move when both Shepard and Feral had moved along the sides enough, using the constantly repeated pillars to move quickly.

Feral's overloads hit the Geth and started forcing them back towards the stairs, the moment the group entered the bottleneck Liara through a singularity straight into the group. Raising the 4 remaining platforms up and into the air and creating what the two humans likened to shooting fish in a barrel. They could just fire repeatedly into the hovering group of machines and with a few extra rounds from Garrus and the two women's pistols, eventually the group just dropped to the floor; dead.

Shepard and Feral waited up ahead for the rest of the group to catch up to them, the non-humans sprinting across the courtyard to catch up to the two. Feral was whispering to Shepard "I can hear something typing up there and it has a heartbeat. Definitely Turian" Shepard had only nodded in response and the moment the rest of his team had caught up to them he stood up and sprinted up the stairs. The last set before the councils meeting platform was ahead of them.

By the time the team reached the top they all had their weapons pointed to the large holographic display ahead of them, at the end of the extended platform. Shepard looked back at Feral "Are you sure you heard him?"

Feral just nodded, concentrating as hard as he could on listening "Yes definitely…..he's still here but there's some sort of humming…." He shook his head slightly trying to get a bead on it.

"Humming?...Oh crap" Shepard turned back as Saren floated up into the air, riding on top of his humming flying platform. The rogue spectre shot a few rounds towards the group as he threw a grenade to them.

Every member of Shepard's team leaping out of the way, Feral and Tali diving to the right and everyone else diving to the left. Shepard was lying with his back to the railing and he could see Saren in his periphery. Everyone else was lying flat to the ground, the raised edge barely provided any cover and not even Feral was crazy enough to crouch up. Saren had the advantage and they all knew it. However that didn't stop Feral trying to worm his way around towards a better position but a round flew over his head made him stop.

"Ah, ah, ah. I've heard about you super human but even you can't take too many rounds" Saren just clicked in amusement before he turned his attention back to Shepard "I was afraid you wouldn't make it in time Shepard"

"In time for what?" everyone was listening to the commander talk back to Saren, Feral hadn't been there for the conversation the two had on Virmire but he'd heard all about it. If anyone could talk Saren down it'd be Shepard, he just hoped they were ready for the worst if it came to that.

"The final confrontation, I think we both knew it was going to end like this" The turian clearly loved the sound of his own voice, and completely deluded "You've lost, you know that don't you? In a few minutes Sovereign will have full control of the Citadel's systems. The relay will open and the Reapers will return"

Feral and Tali could only share a smirk at Shepard's response "I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve"

Saren just laughed again "You survived our encounter on Virmire. But I've changed since then, improved. Sovereign has….upgraded me" he growled at that.

Garrus was seething, he hated what the spectre had become. He'd looked up to the man once but now it was unbelievable he ever had. Saren was a disgrace to his kind but he remained quiet. Despite everything everyone wanted to scream at the bastard they stayed quiet, letting Shepard handle it.

"You let Sovereign implant you? Are you insane?" Shepard shouted, perfectly reflecting what everyone was thinking.

"I suppose I should thank you Shepard. After Virmire, I couldn't stop thinking about what you had said. About Sovereign manipulating me. About indoctrination. The doubts began to eat away at me and Sovereign sensed my hesitation. I was implanted to strengthen his resolve"

'Keelah' Tali could only whisper across at Feral, they'd both seen the results of Reaper implantation and indoctrination in the facility on Virmire. Saren was a lost cause, there was no way he was walking away from this alive.

"Now my doubts are gone. I believe in Sovereign completely. I understand that the Reapers need organics. Join us and Sovereign will find a place for you too" Saren concluded his speech, you could hear the pride dripping from his voice.

Shepard had been controlling the level of his voice but now he was losing that control "Sovereign's controlling you through your implants! Don't you see that?" he screamed at the turian "Sovereign hasn't won yet, I can still stop it from taking control of the station! Step aside and the invasion will never happen!"

Suddenly a sound no one expected, desperation in Saren's voice "We can't stop it! Not forever! You saw what happened to the Protheans." Visions of death, organics being torn apart by machines. An endless and useless struggle passed in front of Shepard's eyes. "The Reapers are too powerful"

"Some part of you must realise this is wrong! You were a spectre! You can fight this!" Shepard had picked up on the desperate tone of Saren's voice, appealing to whatever honour he had left was his only chance.

Saren panted slightly, his hands coming up and clutching his head "Maybe you're right. Maybe there still is a chance for….Ah!" his sentence ended in a roar of pain before he managed to utter out some more words "The implants…Sovereign is too strong….I'm sorry…it's…too late for me"

The entire team jumped up at that expecting a fight, their weapons training on Saren before they looked at each other in surprise. A weapon was already pointing at the turian's head. His own pistol. "Goodbye Shepard…..thank you" a single shot rang out as Saren squeezed his own trigger, the round passing straight through his head. The team watched as his body and glider just dropped down to the grass below.

Shepard and his squad slowly dropped their weapons. Feral sighed and looked over at Tali "Is it bad that in the end I felt sorry for him? He was indoctrinated…I mean he was obviously a bastard before this but…this was all Sovereign's doing…..God why can't things just be black and white?" He groaned as he pulled his recon hood off, shoving it under his chest plate.

Tali put a hand on his shoulder "the universe is funny like that….I remember one time I found a base full of dead scientists and soldiers. The man who killed them turned out to be good guy despite what he'd done….and look where he is now. He's stood by my side this whole time" she smiled gently from behind her helmet "Sometimes grey is a good thing as well Feral"

The two started walking around as Shepard stepped up to the holographic terminal "Well….when you put it like that I guess I can't argue" he laughed slightly

Tali squeezed his shoulder gently as they walked "as for whether it's bad to feel sorry for Saren….in the end he stopped himself….he realised what he'd become and took his own life…somehow I agree with you." She shrugged, it was confusing. He'd caused so much pain and suffering but it hadn't been all him. It was the reaper Sovereign "I'm just glad it's going to be over soon" that made Feral grin even more

"Hell yes it is" he smirked as he joined up with Shepard, Garrus and Liara had only just beaten them there and Shepard had his omni-tool up. He was uploading Vigil's data file and after a few moments his omni-tool beeped and flashed.

"The data file worked, I have full control of the systems" Shepard smiled, it was the first really good piece of news they'd had all day.

Liara was the first to speak up "Quick! Open the citadel arms! Maybe the fleet can destroy Sovereign before he takes control of the entire station"

Shepard looked over at Feral "See if you can open a communications channel with the Fleet" the super human just nodded and both he and Tali huddled around his omni-tool as they got to work. It only took a few seconds though, one channel was open across the board and the voice rang out into the council hall.

"…the Destiny Ascension. Main drives offline. Kinetic barriers down 40%. The council is on board. I repeat. The council is on board!" the Asari's voice came through loud and clear.

Before Shepard could even think Joker's voice came ringing out of his omni-tool "Normandy to the Citadel. Normandy to the Citadel. Please tell me that's you Commander"

Everyone smiled at the sound of Joker's voice. They'd never ever admit it to him later on but knowing the Normandy was out there made their day even better. "I'm here Joker"

"We caught the Destiny Ascension's distress call Commander. I'm sitting here in the Andura sector with the entire Arcturus fleet. We can save it! Just unlock the relays and we'll bring in the cavalry!" you could hear it in his voice, he was itching for a fight as well.

"I don't want to sound cruel but….what did the council ever do for us? We should hold back the reinforcements and put them all into destroying Sovereign. We'll need every ship we have to take that monster down" Garrus said, it was cruel but simple mathematics and he had a point.

Liara glared at him slightly before turning back to Shepard "John Sovereign is a threat to all species, we can't put humanity first! You can't let all those people die" and there was the second valid point, Shepard had two choices.

"What's the order Commander? Do we come in now and save the Ascension or should we hold back?" Joker needed an answer now and Shepard wasn't ready to give it, he was too deep in thought when he heard Feral talk from the rear of the group.

"Shepard…the only thing you need to look at to make this decision is this group. Turians, Asari, Quarians, Krogan, Humans and….other" he gestured to himself for that one "The simple truth is humanity can't do this alone and this group has proven that. We need them Shepard, and killing the council is only going to push them away. Save the Ascension because the truth is when humanity is left to its own devices….we'll just tear ourselves apart."

Shepard listened to everything he said and Feral laid it out pure and simple, it didn't matter if Sovereign was a threat to all species. It didn't matter if lives were lost because that was inevitable either way. The truth was the decision boiled down to did they need the support of other races, and the answer was yes. Feral himself was proof of his last statement.

Shepard smiled as he opened the link to Joker again "Opening the relays now Joker. We need to save the Ascension no matter the cost" Feral smiled back at Shepard and even Garrus agreed with the super soldier's logic. He'd done it on Noveria and now he'd done it again. In the end the past didn't matter and neither did race, they all needed each other and letting the council die was a bad idea.

High above the Citadel, the Normandy followed by the rest of the Arcturus fleet. Within minutes the Destiny Ascension had been saved, it had cost the Alliance several ships in the process but the surprise attack from the Alliance Navy surprised the Geth fleet enough that the casualties weren't higher. After the Ascension had been cleared, the citadel arms slowly started to open. The black squid shaped form of Sovereign attached the council tower became visible to the entire fleet as the Normandy began its attack run, leading the Alliance and Citadel fleet's attack on the reaper.

Shepard watched as the citadel arm's opened in front of the window, smiling as he could see ships flooding towards Sovereign before he looked down to the bottom of the chamber. "Make sure he's dead" he glared at Saren as he gave the open order.

"No problem Shepard" Feral said from the back of the group, before looking over the edge of the platform. Picking Tali up he then walked off the edge of the platform and landing firmly into the ground below, the metal in his legs combined with his dense muscles taking the full brunt of the fall. It helped Tali didn't weigh a lot as well but after he put her down she hit his shoulder.

"Bosh'tet, you could've told me you were going to do that" she glared at the smiling human as they made their way towards Saren's body.

Feral just grinned playfully as he took out his pistol, he was sure he could hear Garrus making remarks on the way he'd grabbed Tali from up ahead but right now he was more focused on Saren. He certainly sounded dead, no noises whatsoever, but it was better to be safe. "Oh please Tali, you were in very safe hands" pulling his phalanx pistol up and aiming straight at the dead Turian's forehead he squeezed the trigger three times. One bullet into his forehead and two straight into his chest.

Tali just sighed and watched as Feral put three rounds into Saren. She opened her radio link to Shepard "If he wasn't dead before, he is now" closing her radio again. "Feral…you're right. I do trust you but you could still give me a heads up before you walk off a platform that high up" pointing up at the platform way above them "I'm still getting used to the fact you are very difficult to break" she giggled at that, the way he acted you forgot he was practically impossible to hurt.

Feral laughed at that as well, his phalanx was back on his thigh "Fair enough Tali, I promise the next time I leap off something with you in my arms I'll tell you first" he teased as he stepped up towards her, they were under the platform so no one could see them. Gazing happily into her eyes before suddenly the entire tower rocked. Red bolts of energy started streaming throughout the room "What the fu-"

Suddenly the red energy bolts flew into Saren's corpse, the energy making it twist and contort. Feral and Tali stepped back and looked up at the platform above them. Looking for any reason to what was happening but before they could even call to Shepard the energy exploded out of Saren's body. The shockwave blew them both back, luckily for the pair of them it was just a shockwave; no fire, no shrapnel. Tali went off one way and rolled along the grass and Feral went flying into the pillar behind them.

The force from the shockwave and the weight of Feral impacting the tower shook the platform Shepard, Garrus and Liara were standing on loose. Collapsing down and breaking through the rest of the glass before they rolled off. Groaning in pain from the sudden stop of the floor, Shepard looked up and saw for the second time a dead body getting up again. Saren was moving, groaning and roaring as the red energy swirled around his body before his skin and clothing started melting away.

As everyone was picking themselves up off the floor, Shepard just watched as the implants under Saren's flesh were slowly revealed, the metal exoskeleton just stood there staring at him and his team. The red energy crackling inside its metallic rib cage, compared to Feral's metal weaving though instead of shiny titanium was a dark, dull metal. His eyes met the throbbing red balls of energy in the robot's skull before its voice rang out.

"I am Sovereign, and this station is mine!" Saren's voice but with a deeper tone, Sovereign had taken total control of Saren's body. Sovereign's avatar then crouched down and leapt up onto the ceiling firing an energy beam at Shepard's team as they scrambled to their feet, reaching for their weapons.

"By the Goddess what is that?" Liara managed to scream as they dived into whatever cover they could find, grabbing their weapons as the avatar fire rapid energy beams and pulses at them. It was hopping around too fast for them to get a good bead on it.

Shepard and Feral were trying their best though, firing long bursts from their assault rifles whenever they could. But whatever shots they managed to get on the machine just bounced off its shielding before any of them reached it. "It's Sovereign! Liara get a stasis on that thing, stop it from moving. Tali and Feral knock its shields out as fast as you can and Garrus just shoot the bastard!" Shepard barked out to his team and they quickly followed his orders.

Assault rifle fire was coming from the two humans and Garrus, trying to put as many rounds into it as possible. Overloads were being thrown at the machine as quickly as the two techs could muster, but the shields were strong the sustained fire and overloads weren't putting much of a dent on it. Liara was trying her best to stasis the avatar but it was moving so fast she couldn't focus the biotic power onto it.

"I can't get a fix on it Shepard!" Liara shouted across the room.

Feral growled, he was fed up of this thing running rings around them, he primed a grenade and then jumped up out of cover the moment he saw the machine latch onto the roof. Releasing the grenade as a beam connected with his shoulder knocking him back onto the ground as it immediately penetrated his shields. Luckily for him the grenade hit the machine and detonated, it didn't get through its shielding but the force knocked it to the ground.

It gave Liara her opportunity, as the machine scrambled around on its back trying to roll over she hit it with a stasis. Freezing the machine on the floor and allowing Shepard's team to hit it with everything they had. Feral was unable to fire his weapon but he still hit the machine with an overload along with Tali. Finally the machines shields fell and both Shepard and Garrus followed that with as much gun fire as they could, followed by several HE grenades. The explosions kicked dust and smoke into the air, and it obstructed their view of the avatar.

Tali was with Feral as they both watched the smoke swirl around, she was putting medi-gel onto his shoulder. The armour plating had taken most of the beam but it'd burnt some of his exposed skin and he was bleeding a little, the medi-gel was taking care of the pain and Feral's healing was reforming the damaged skin very quickly. "Thanks Tali" he smiled through the pain as it started to subside, stretching out his hand before he picked up his rifle again.

She was about to respond, her fingers tracing along the edges of the quickly healing skin, but she was interrupted by the movement of the avatar as the smoke dissipated. "Keelah you've got to be kidding me."

The avatar was damaged, its shield was still down, but it was still moving. Pieces of the exoskeleton were missing and sparks were erupting from several of its joints. It just howled again before crawling at lightning speed towards Liara, the Asari was its biggest concern and if it took her out. No more stasis. Gun fire was bouncing off its metal body as it quickly moved towards the woman. She was moving back as fast as she could, doing whatever she could to try and slow it down.

The avatar just kept coming and it was within striking distance and it leapt towards her but a shoulder came up and hit it in the side of the head, knocking it down onto its side. Garrus had shunted into its side, the turian wasn't the strongest member of the team but he'd taken the machine by surprise in mid-air. The avatar rolled over onto its side before quickly bringing on of its arms up and brushing the turian away, sweeping its arm into him.

Garrus was thrown off his feet and onto his side, he thought he may have been able to get a shot off into the avatar but it had recovered faster than he'd anticipated. The blow to his shoulder had been hard, shouting out as he collapsed to the floor. His arm felt dead and he was sure he'd probably broken it slightly. When he looked up again he expected to see the Avatar coming to finish him off but instead he saw Feral.

The super human had watched Garrus' charge and he'd followed it up, if it had worked he could've joined in with the follow up attack. Two assault rifles would've torn the machine apart but as he watched Garrus get swiped to the side he released the hold on his trigger, gripping his M-8 tightly in his left hand as he brought his arm back. Unleashing an overload just to ensure the shield was completely dead he threw his fist forward, connecting with the avatar's head dead on before it could move.

The force of his punch was summated along with the speed he had moved, he'd been sprinting to back up Garrus and his forward momentum collected into his hand. The metal of the avatar's head was hard and instead of disintegrating immediately, the side of its face exploded removing the left cheek and sending it reeling into the wall. This time the machine was disorientated, it'd lost part of its left eye and the force had broken some connections in its neck.

By the time it could see the super human again, Feral had taken a hold of his rifle again and he'd been joined by Shepard and Tali. The three proceeded to fire everything they had into the machine before it had any time to move at all. Two assault rifles and a shotgun tore into the avatar, Tali was shooting as quickly as she could but the two men were just holding down the trigger. The barrage of small arm's fire only lasted between 10 and 20 seconds but the damage was colossal, the close range power of their weapons had torn apart the machine. They just watched as a final energy surge covered the machine's body before the metal dissolved completely.

The entire group gave a sigh of relief, Garrus groaning in pain as he clutched his arm. Shepard moved over to the Turian and pulled him up onto his feet. Feral just called over "That's what you get for trying to be me Garrus" chuckling slightly before adding when he noticed Liara staring daggers at him, Garrus probably saved her life "But….good job buddy, we couldn't have won without it" he smiled at Garrus before Liara rolled her eyes and went over to help Shepard with the broken turian.

Feral and Tali lead the group back up to the upper level of the council chamber. Feral gave Tali a boost up to the level above before doing the same with Shepard and Liara. Shepard then helped him move Garrus up, they weren't completely sure how bad his arm was but considering the threat was gone and they'd rather avoid incurring the wrath of Karin Chakwas by making it worse. Tali and Liara were walking off with Garrus towards the elevator while Shepard leant down and offered his hand to Feral, who took a running leap up the wall and grabbing the commander's hand.

Feral and Shepard sighed happily as they looked out of the council window, they could see the battle raging on but they had no idea how it was going. "Thank god this is over Shepard…." Feral smiled weakly as he rubbed his hand through his hair.

Shepard could only smile back before sighing "Sovereign won't be the last…..the truth is we've only delayed the inevitable"

Feral just laughed at that, making Shepard give him a confused look "Just enjoy the moment Shepard, we've won the battle. Let's take some joy from that" his face dropped as suddenly a shadow started to cover them. Looking up the two soldiers both saw a large piece of debris hurtling towards them. In the split second they had to analyse the object, it looked like one of Sovereign's arms.

Two things ran through Shepard's mind. One, the fleets had destroyed Sovereign and this really was over for now, and two "Everybody run! Take cover now!" Shepard screamed as both he and Feral started running after the rest of the group, who were already down the stairs. They'd only just reached the stairs when the arm crashed through the window and the council chambers exploded with dust and smoke.

Tali turned back briefly and the last thing she saw was smoke and dust enveloping Shepard and Feral before the advancing debris and smoke reached them. The three of them dived for cover as pieces of the Reaper destroyed the surroundings and threatened to crush them. The last thing she saw before the smoke eventually caught up to her was Garrus dragging her out of the way of a falling piece of metal.

- 10 minutes later –

Captain Anderson had a small squad of C-sec with him. They were just leaving the elevator into the Council chamber; the place was a mess with pieces of Sovereign strewn all over the place. Small fires in the corners of the room and he could taste the smoke and dust lingering in the air. A C-sec officer lead the way, weaving and ducking around and under the rubble and metal, his omni-tool lighting a path for the small group.

Anderson had no idea what to expect, he could only pray that when they came across Shepard's team they'd still be alive. He heard the C-sec officer call back that he'd found a body but within seconds he muttered that it was just a Geth. Anderson smiled at that, no matter what had happened in here Shepard and his team had given the synthetic's one hell of a beating.

They'd finally hit what seemed like a dead end, a piece of the Reaper was blocking their path but the officer had found a small panel he could pull out of the way. He watched as the officer ducked down and immediately looked back with a smile on his face "We've found them Captain"

Anderson was relieved to hear that, ducking down and following the officer he saw three figures ahead of him. The turian, Garrus. The Asari, Liara. The Quarian, Tali'Zorah nar Rayya. But the two humans were missing, Feral and Shepard were nowhere to be seen. He choked out the only question he could muster "Where's Shepard? Where's Feral?" he looked to the group in front of him for answers but all they did was look at the ground and shake their heads. Tali looked towards the back of the room.

Anderson sighed and told the officer's to help them up, he could see Garrus was hurt and favouring his right arm considerably. The two women looked in pain but it was probably for dodging flying metal and smoke. He turned back as the group was dragged to their feet but some scrambling in the distance caught their attention.

Shepard suddenly appeared from the rubble behind him, his forehead was bleeding slightly from a small cut and his right arm looked a little limp. He was panting and the group couldn't believe what they were seeing until their train of thought was broken by a short ragged sentence "I need help, now!" he quickly turn and slid back down the debris he was on.

Anderson just followed as fast as he could, he was joined by several C-sec officers and Tali. She'd shoved the officer helping her off him, she wasn't that hurt and if Shepard was asking for help it could only mean that Feral was in trouble. The group rushed after Shepard and finally they found the source of his plead for help.

Feral just groaned out a laugh "Sleeping Beauty is back with help….about time this thing is getting really heavy" he was panting heavily. He was on one knee with his other foot planted firmly into the ground, across his shoulders was a huge piece of metal debris. Below him was a small rock with blood on it, it must have been Shepard's. Neither Anderson nor the officers could believe what they were seeing, to Tali and Shepard it just seemed so normal, but they were watching a feat of strength that no human should be capable of.

Anderson quickly moved forward and the officers joined him, the captain kneeling between Shepard and Tali as they tried to help hold up the beam but he knew they truth. Shepard was hurt and the few officers he had didn't have the combined strength to help lift it up. But that wasn't the most major concern. Protruding from underneath Feral's collar bone, just next to his shoulder, was a thin, circular spike. Even if he did still have the strength to move the debris, he was connected to it.

Feral was still panting, groaning as he tried to get into a comfortable position but it was difficult. The metal was pushing him into the grass beneath him and the spike in his shoulder meant he really couldn't move a lot. After watching Tali and Shepard and a couple of the officers try but fail to relieve the pressure on Feral Anderson just asked him "What do we need to do? How can we help?"

Feral forced a small laugh in between panting "Is Wrex over there? I could really use him right now" he sighed when Anderson just shook his head "Ok…..I need you to cut through the spike but I need you to cut between my shoulder and this thing " nodded his head up towards the debris. The spike was going through at a diagonal angle and there was no way he could push the spike out of himself.

"If we do that you'll be burnt!" Tali tried to stay calm but her voice betrayed her, she was starting to panic. The spike was stopping Feral from bleeding too badly but if the pain made him drop this thing on top of him he'd be crushed.

Feral looked up at her as best as he could "That's why you'd have to cut quickly….don't worry I can take the pain. I didn't come this far to die now" he grinned up at her, his infectious smile.

Damn that smile of his "Keelah…." She sighed before nodding "Ok then Feral" she punched up her omni-tool and got the cutting mechanism ready.

Shepard and Anderson just looked at each other, Shepard nodded towards the captain but Anderson had to ask "Are you sure about this?" he stared straight into Feral's animalistic red eyes. The gaze he found in return showed nothing but a will to survive he'd only ever seen in the best marines he'd ever served with, including Shepard.

"Yes" Feral said simply, his voice as calm and focused as possible as he gripped onto the debris however he could, bolstering his shoulders and legs.

Anderson ordered the officers he had to help him hold it, they wouldn't do much but if the super human did start easing off because of the pain they could help take any slack. They took a second to move into position grabbing onto it anyway they could. They nodded over to Anderson and Tali nodded as well. They were all ready.

"You know Shepard…if you hadn't tripped and hit your head on that bloody rock this never would have happened" Feral just laughed as he looked at the commander

"So this is all my fault?" Shepard smiled back at Feral as he joked

"Well…..yeah it is. You're the one who released me remember" Feral took a deep breath "I had to pay you back for that somehow didn't I? And catching this huge piece of Sovereign is my way of saying thank you….now can we please get it off me?" he was breathing slowly, waiting for Tali to start cutting.

Tali had pushed one of her hands down onto Feral's shoulder, moving the joint down slightly so she could cut as far away from him as possible. She lit up the cutting torch on her omni-tool and started burning through the piece of metal, in her periphery she could see the molten metal bubbling on Feral's shields before they dripped through and burnt through his clothing. She couldn't see Feral's face but she could hear him holding back as the smell of burning flesh started to fill the air.

Anderson and Shepard could only watch as Feral's face starting contorting in pain, luckily for him one of the C-sec officers had taken the initiative and was swiping as much of the metal of him before it seared too badly. But it was still agony, he was biting down on his lip as hard as he could and was trying to focus on other things. He'd been in this position before, it was practically torture all over again, and he could take a 'light' burning.

Shepard grabbed the side of his head and pulled him up to look at him, his sudden action was caused by the steady constant stream of blood pouring down the sides of Feral's chin. His canines had pierced straight into them and he needed Feral to concentrate on getting through this "C'mon Feral, it hurts I know but you can do this. You've been through worse and instead of scientists you've get friends around you" he smiled as he saw the look of determination rise in Feral's eyes again.

Feral roared out finally as he felt his shoulder come free, Tali had finally cut all the way through and the moment she did he pushed himself up onto his feet. Holding the debris on his shoulders as best as he could, Tali and the officers quickly moving out of the way as they watched him lift the metal up. Finally letting it drop behind him as he fell forward onto his knees, panting and groaning as he grabbed the rest of the spike and pulled it out of his shoulder. He nearly collapsed from exhaustion but Anderson grabbed him in mid fall.

Anderson slowly pulled the panting man to his feet and slung his right arm over his shoulder. His left arm was burnt and still bleeding from the spike, but it was starting to heal quickly. Feral was mainly just exhausted, holding the debris for so long had taken it out of him and every muscle in his body was aching. "Well done son, now let's get you all patched up"

Feral hanged off the man's arm, smiling until he felt another figure gently prop his other side up. Tali had checked his burns and she could see them quickly started to heal over again before she took his left arm and wrapped it over her neck. "Thank you….both of you. As for patching up I'll be fine in a bit….I'm just really tired" he laughed breathlessly, small trails of blood trailing down his chin, as they started to all make their way out of the council chamber.

Shepard was walking in front of the group before turning around "Considering what we've just accomplished…I'd say we've earnt a little rest" he smiled back at the super soldier. After everything they'd gone through. Saren was dead, Sovereign was destroyed. The reaper invasion had been stopped for now and the Geth were in complete disarray. They'd have to spend a few months cleaning up the last of them but for now, the battle had been won.


	17. I highly doubt it

After a while the Normandy was finally able to dock with the Citadel, the moment it did Kaidan and Wrex came out of the airlock. They couldn't help but share a grin at the sight in front of them. The squad Shepard had taken with them, they were battered, bruised and in some cases a little bloody but they had all come back.

Garrus' left arm was in a small sling to keep it steady before Chakwas could examine him. Liara and Tali looked fine, they were covered in dust and at least Liara looked exhausted. They could only guess Tali was just as fatigued as she slumped next to a crate. Feral had blood stains on his chin and a hole protruding through his armour and clothing at his shoulder, they couldn't imagine what he'd gone through to look as tired as he did. Shepard also had an arm in a sling and a small cut on his forehead, blood stains adorning his cheek. All of their armour had scrapes and bullet glances on them, close calls that their shielding deflected.

They had obviously gone through hell and thanks to Shepard, they'd come back. Hurt, exhausted and wanting nothing but to shower, eat and sleep. The sight of their two team mates did bring smiles to their faces. "I guess we must've missed one hell of a show huh?" Kaidan could only smirk at his friends.

Feral just laughed and groaned at the feeling of every muscle in his body begging him not to move too much. "Ahhhh you have…..no idea" the man just sinking back onto the floor, refusing to move anymore "someone get me a stretcher….."

Wrex laughed loudly "What happened to him?" to Wrex watching one of the strongest creatures he knew, other than him, in such a state was hilarious.

"He stopped a huge piece of debris and then held it on his shoulders for about 10 minutes while Shepard was unconscious from hitting his head on a stone…plus the metal was about 5 times his own weight" Tali looked up at the Krogan "Oh and he had a piece of metal the length of a sniper rifle and about as thick as a bottle neck in his shoulder at the same time" she shrugged playfully before poking Feral in the back with her foot "It's kind of worn him out a little" she giggled as he squirmed pathetically at her poking.

Kaidan just whistled "That is something I wish I could've seen"

"Ask one of the officers over there….I'm pretty sure one of them took a picture" Feral groaned on the floor as he pointed off towards the small group by the elevator doors, snorting as he watched both Wrex and Kaidan look at each other before going off towards them

The group was about to go back to sitting in peace before a woman's voice rang out "Commander John Shepard! What have I told you about giving me this much work to do?" she sounded angry but it was obvious she was more than relieved to find the entire team alive. "Captain Anderson, it's good to see you but if you would excuse us. I need to get them all into the med bay" she smiled sweetly at the Captain before glaring at the Commander again. "All of you who can be bothered to walk get into the med bay now. You two put Feral on a stretcher"

Tali and Liara were the first to quickly step off towards the airlock, followed by Garrus and Shepard. The two men were sore and slightly broken but they could still move under their own steam. Feral more or less fell asleep the moment he was rolled onto the stretcher. Anderson just chuckled at the scene before starting to head back towards C-sec, the wrath of Chakwas was clearly still feared. He had some work to do now, Udina wanted to see him and he needed to help co-ordinate the C-sec and Alliance efforts around the citadel. Plus there was the idea Feral had posed to him before Ilos in the council chambers, and he knew exactly how to make it work.

Chakwas finally had her patients in the med bay. Tali and Liara were just sitting on one of the beds, talking to each other and the doctor could see they were both fine. She'd check them out just to be sure but other than fatigue the two women checked out. Feral was fine as well, he was just at a state of tiredness beyond exhausted and needed to rest. Garrus had a hairline fracture on his arm, it was easy enough to deal with but it'd still take a few weeks to fully heal. Shepard or 'Sleeping Beauty' as Feral had mumbled before he'd fallen asleep again had a slight concussion and his shoulder was beaten pretty badly but it wasn't broken, just bruised.

Chakwas sighed happily, all in all it was very good news. "Ok then. Tali, Liara and Garrus you can leave. Vakarian, don't take off the medi-gel cast and don't try to lift anything with that arm….in fact just….don't work at all. Shepard you stay here for the time being, I want to make sure your concussion isn't anything worse and Feral keep sleeping" she smiled at that last bit. She was just relieved that they had all come back.

Shepard groaned as he laid back down onto the medical bed, he was about to argue but then he remembered that his doctor was Chakwas. Nothing to do but accept his fate and sleep. Garrus laughed slightly, his left arm being held in place but the see through block of solid medi-gel kept his arm still. "Have fun Shepard, tell Feral we'll all be waiting for him in the cargo bay when he finally wakes up"

Shepard glared at the turian as he walked out, it didn't change the fact Garrus was right. When Feral woke up he'd be as good as new and he'd be straight out of the room, he was on a night watch. He did smile when Liara kissed him on the cheek "Rest John, we'll save the celebrating until you're better. How could we celebrate when the man who lead us isn't there?" she smiled and gave him a quick hug, pecking him again quickly as she stood up and left before Chakwas told them to stop.

Chakwas was sitting back down at her desk when she saw Tali out of the corner of her eye, she was mid step and the doctor watched as she put her heel back down onto the floor before quickly stepping over to the sleeping Feral. 'Good for you Tali' she thought to herself as she engrossed herself in her own work.

Tali had picked her moment, she had waited for Garrus and Liara to leave, for Shepard to roll over and cover his head with a pillow and then Chakwas to sit back down. She had watched Liara say goodbye to Shepard and even though Feral was asleep she still wanted to do the same for him, as best as she could. He was on his side and turned away from the med bay door, so she scooted over to the side of the bed he was facing.

Bending down slightly and looking at his sleeping face, he looked so peaceful. It hadn't even been an hour since she'd been cutting him free from a piece of debris that weighed as much as 10 of her. Gently touching the spot where the piece of metal had been sticking out of his skin, his ability to heal still amazed her and the patch of skin was perfectly reformed. She kept gently stroking the skin until she saw a single eye open and look up at her.

"Hey Tali" he whispered quietly, he wasn't being discrete he was just in that stage between sleeping and being awake. Sighing as he nuzzled his head into his people before opening his right eye and looking back at her, a small content smile on his face.

Tali whispered back, she didn't want Chakwas to find out what she'd done "Keelah. Oh Feral I'm so sorry I didn't mean to wake you up I just wanted to say goodnight to you and I…you're doing that face again" she slowly stopped as she finally recognised Feral's 'Stop talking and being adorable' face.

Feral laughed quietly "I told you this morning, seeing you when I wake up is something I can get used to. If it had been Garrus I might have punched him but you? You I can handle being woken up by" smiling happily as he cupped the side of her helmet gently. "Plus now you get to say goodnight to me properly"

Blushing and smiling happily down at the man before she leant forward and put one arm under his right shoulder and pushed her head into his collar. "Sleep well Feral" she leant back and rubbed the top of her visor into his forehead. "You deserve it"

Nuzzling his skin gently into the smooth surface of her visor "You know if you ask Chakwas really nicely maybe she'll let you sleep with me" he stuck his tongue out playfully before closing his eye "You look tired as well, and I can't have my shotgun toting silver lining tired. Who knows what she'll end up shooting"

Tali giggled quietly "I'll put my shotgun away I promise, but if I do tote it I'll make sure Garrus is the only one in the room with me" pulling away from Feral and gently stroking his cheek "I'll see you when you're awake, goodnight Feral" smiling happily as she stepped back from the bed.

"Can't wait…..goodnight Tali" Feral sighed back as he pushed his face into the pillow, covering his eyes so his night vision would pick up on the light in the room through his eyelids. Smiling as he felt sleep overtake him again and Tali's soft voice resonating in his mind. He noticed the Normandy's lights dim; Pressley must have taken the initiative to put the ship into its sleep cycle. He'd have to thank the XO for that later on.

Hours passed Feral and Shepard both slept as throughout the Citadel people started to clean up the damage. The fleets docking whatever ships they could to provide assistance in the relief efforts. The worst areas hit where those directly around the central ring of the citadel, but some of the arms had been hit with debris from Sovereign. There were a lot of casualties across the station, many more missing and most levels of all command structures reeling to regain control.

The council were doing their best to try and push things in the right direction, as well as considering a new agenda. The possibility of admitting Humanity to the council, the actions of several individuals had brought about the possibility of Saren's defeat; John Shepard, Ashley Williams, Kaidan Alenko, 'Feral' and Captain Anderson. Along with the many human lives sacrificed in saving the councils after the relays around the citadel opened. These actions had shown the council that Humanity was willing to do what it took to protect all species not just their own. However they would wait to talk to Commander Shepard, their first human Spectre would aid them in their choice.

Captain Anderson was currently enjoying a riveting speech about how humanity could use this victory to their advantage. He was sitting in the ambassador's office as the man practically had his own private party. 'Bastard, the citadel is still in ruins and hundreds of lives have been lost and the first thing you think of is how to turn this to our advantage' he thought to himself, he was largely ignoring the politician and simply putting his thoughts towards Shepard's team.

John Shepard had done what he never could have, became the first human spectre and became a hero for more than just humanity. Every race had the commander to thank for their lives now, but not just the commander. More or less every species had a hero on board the Normandy; Turians, Asari, Krogan and even Quarians had a representative to be proud of. His achievements were completely unprecedented; the real hope of this event is a closer galactic community. Then there was the bridge building idea that Feral had presented him before Ilos.

_Anderson sighed as he sat on the bench, the plan was good but he had no idea how he could help pull it off "Feral where did this idea even come from anyway?" _

_The super human laughed "Let's just say I have a vested interest." Grinning back towards the elder marine "Other than that my reasons are my own…..so can you help?" _

_Anderson sighed again before he thought about it more "I can present it to a few admirals and if they buy it then….we'd just need approval on their end. Just remind me why I'm going to do this for you at all" _

_Feral laughed again, sitting back into the bench "Don't worry about their approval I'm sure I can get that myself and as for why you'll help me…A, I'm kind of helping save the galaxy when I really didn't have to and B, you and Shepard snuck around behind my back…you sort of owe me"_

_Anderson smiled slightly at that "I guess I can't fault you there then….Ok I'll look into it. I can't promise I'll be able to do much before you head off to Ilos but I'm sure after this is all done you'll have weeks of shore leave anyway. I'll do what I can you have my word" _

_Feral smiled back at the commander before looking up towards the council "Shepard's coming back down…..I'd consider it a personal favour to me if you kept this on the down low" sitting up as he watched the Captain nod his head in understanding. _

After that conversation with the mysterious human being he'd only been slightly distracted by freeing the Normandy and then dealing with Udina after he had punched the politician. A few hours of digging around the citadel to catch up to Shepard, only to find the mission was over when he'd arrived. Now he had time to think, while Udina was busy planning his next big political move he thought back to Feral's plan.

Back on the Normandy Feral was finally awake, it had only been around 6 hours but it had been more than enough for him to catch up. 'Perfect soldier material indeed' he snorting slightly. Feral was rarely tired and when he was 6 hours of sleep was plenty. Slipping out of bed he saw that Shepard was still asleep, the concussion was still healing and his body demanded sleep…that or Chakwas had caught him trying to sneak away and sedated him.

As he slowly started to step towards the door he saw Chakwas spin around in her chair and face him "Good morning Feral, feeling 100% again are we?" she smiled at him kindly

"…you're going to take my word for it? Normally you'd be strapping me back down and forcing a series of massive tests on me" he raised his eyebrow at the woman as he sat back on the desk opposite hers.

She laughed quietly at that "Feral you have been shot in the head twice and laid on one of my tables clinically dead before waking up. Considering I've seen the photo of your feat of strength and the series of tests I ran while you were asleep. I'd say I more or less trust you on your own health"

Feral shrugged before laughing again "Fair enough then, so I'm good to go?" he smiled as she just nodded at him "What about him?" pointing over to the still sleeping commander.

"Shepard? Oh don't worry I didn't have to sedate him. He's sleeping for now, the concussion and the fact he hasn't slept much in a few nights thanks to Liara" she sighed as she turned back to her chair "He'll be fine, give him a few more hours and he'll be up as good as new"

Feral was about to ask how she knew but then it occurred to him he probably didn't want to know. Laughing as he walked out of the med bay and into the mess hall. He was greeted by a collective groan and cheers, the marines and crew members exchanging money as he finally got it. "Placing bets on who wakes up first?" raising an eyebrow "I expect that from Garrus but…no you're Shepard's crew I expect it from the lot of you" laughing to himself as the crew members dispersed.

Garrus stayed sitting at the table, chuckling as Feral sat down opposite him "Good to see you moving again Feral. I have to admit I was certain after that little stunt of yours Shepard would be up first" he said before he started counting the credit chits he'd collected "But then I remembered about all those bullets to the head you took, you're cut by the way" holding out a couple of the chits.

Feral laughed as he took the chits "I can't believe they bought the betting idea" the two sharing a laugh together as they sat at the table counting up their profits. Sighing slightly after he pocketed the chits "I can't believe this over….4 years in a box and here I am about a month later after taking down one of the biggest threats to the galaxy since the Rachni…."

Garrus snorted "While I didn't quite spend 4 years in a box I can understand what you mean...C-sec and now this…"

"Are you seriously comparing C-Sec to being tortured and experimented on?" Feral smirked at the Turian.

"Hah….I get your point but still….never thought I'd be doing anything like this with a team like this. I mean come on Humans, a Turian, an Asari, a Krogan, a Quarian and then…you" the two men were sitting forward with their forearms on the table "Going back to C-sec after all this is going to take some getting used to"

"You're going back? Why? You just compared it to what I went through" Feral laughed slightly

Garrus shrugged his shoulders "Shepard showed me that having power doesn't give you the right to use it….I can do good in C-sec"

"Good for you Garrus" Feral smiled at his friend, it was a worthy goal "So if you're going back to C-sec….and I have to assume Kaidan will be staying here because he's a marine. What's everyone else doing?"

"Wrex is going to head back to Tuchunka, I'd rather not know why. Liara is staying as well and I think we both know why that is. I assume Tali will be heading back to the Migrant Fleet." Feral just nodded as he listened before looking back up at Garrus "What about you?"

Feral breathed deeply "I have a plan, whether it'll work or not is yet to be seen but who knows…..don't worry I'm not going to become a mercenary or anything. I'd hate to have to run into you at C-sec" sticking his tongue out playfully at Garrus before they shared another laugh. "It's weird….the first team I've had in 4 years and…we're already splitting up"

"Are you ok?" Garrus asked, pulling Feral out of his train of thought.

Feral nodded "Yeah I am…just nostalgia from a past life. My platoons or squads would always take two photos. Before and after a mission…I missed the before but I'd like to get the after." Smiling gently as he remembered all the photos he had on the chip sitting in one of Tali's pockets.

"I'd like that as well…..one of the good things I've managed to do and I'd like something to remember it by. I'll run it by Shepard when he wakes up, he'll probably love it too" Garrus laughed slightly before looking back at Feral "If you're feeling nostalgic maybe divulging some past information would help. Come one give me something even if it's just the first letter of your name"

Feral laughed loudly before slowly moving to stand up "I like you Garrus but sorry not today" watching the Turian groan and chuckle to himself as he sat at the table "But…..maybe if you ask Tali really nicely she'll tell you" Feral spoke as he turned around and walked off towards the cargo bay, he really needed to get his armour off and shower.

Garrus just stared at the back of Feral in surprise as he processed what he had heard. Tali knew his name and probably a whole lot more about the super human. He sighed and just held out his previous winnings "Damn it Kaidan" counting out the bet he'd have to pay the human biotic later on. Although he had to wonder if Feral had known about the bet….he was walking off with more money than he had now…"Damn it Feral…."

Tali was in the cargo bay, sorting through her things in her locker slightly absent mindedly. She was sure most of the crew was feeling the same, this whole mission had been their lives and now it was over. Of course all of the Normandy crew including Shepard and Kaidan would stay behind, Liara had told her that she planned to stick around as well. She sighed to herself, in a week or so she'd be back on her way to the Flotilla and away from the Normandy. It was a bitter sweet feeling, this ship was so amazing and the people on board were exceptional.

She was so engrossed by her own thoughts that she never even heard Feral walk up behind her. "Hey Tali" his arms coiled around her stomach as he squeezed his chest into her back. "Don't worry no one else is down here, I get the feeling they are all out celebrating" he purred slightly as he rubbed his cheek into the side of the cloth that covered her helmet, squeezing her more as he felt her relax.

Tali smiled inside her helmet "Keelah Feral did you have to be so quiet?" she laid her head back onto his shoulder. One of the things she was starting to love about the man was his height compared to her; she wasn't that much smaller than him but the difference made it easier for her to cuddle under his chin when they stood. "Good morning handsome" she couldn't help it, after not seeing him for 6 hours and having him sneak up behind her. The warmth of his naturally higher body temperature must have added to the effect of his deep red eyes looking down at her.

Feral smiled down at her, his hands gently rubbing at her sides as she laid her hands over his "I wasn't that quiet you were just deep in thought" he pushed his tongue out at her playfully "but good morning to you too beautiful, I guess the end of the world being averted followed by a sneaky hug makes you especially happy"

Tali giggled as she pretty much let the man hold her up, resting against his body "Being hugged by my bosh'tet of a boyfriend makes me especially happy" she wiggled back playfully "And being called beautiful when he has no idea what I actually look like is just a bonus" sighing gently as she closed her eyes.

"I know roughly what you look like, most people can't pick up on it but as you know my eyes are special. I can see a rough outline of your face, I know you have eyes, a nose and lips which are roughly the same as human physiology" Feral smiled playfully as he moved his head closer to her helmet, looking into her eyes when the glowing orbs opened again "but I can't really see the details. That being said I don't need to know any of that to know you're beautiful Tali."

Tali was just listening intently to his words, blushing more and more as he spoke and tapped her visor "Like I said, what you are has never mattered to me. You being a Quarian, the suit and the visor. None of that matters because of who you are and….you're the best friend I've ever had and you make me feel so happy. Everything you've done for me and everything about you that makes you, you." Her jaw was slightly dropping as she just stared up at him "How could you be anything but beautiful to me?"

She just spun around in his arms and wrapped hers back around his chest, pushing the side of her head into the crook of his neck. She'd just been joking and he knew that but he said all that anyway, yet again she couldn't stop herself from beaming behind her visor. Her smile came crashing down when she remembered why she had been at her locker.

As if he had read her mind Feral spoke up "When will you be heading back to the Migrant Fleet?" they parted slightly, hands still lingering on each other's arms as they looked at each other.

She sighed "I have to find transport and make my own way back so it'll take about a week or so for me to get back their…" she looked down at his chest "….I don't know what I'm going to do without you Feral"

A finger on the bottom of her helmet made her look up into his eyes and her sadness was replaced by confusion "I told you Tali, I'll think of something and if the something I have thought of doesn't work and I'm pretty sure it will" he was grinning at her

"Do you think a Quarian captain would accept a super soldier as a pilgrimage gift?" he raised an eyebrow as that infectious smile of his grew even more, Tali couldn't stop herself. She practically squealed as she clung back onto him as tightly as she could. She had no idea how he was going to be able to do it but Feral intended to come with her. This man just couldn't stop making her happy could he?

"Hey Feral" she purred out gently as she kept her arms around him "Shepard should be asleep for a few more hours right?" looking up at him as she wiggled slightly.

"Yeah I should say so…why?" Feral leant forward and looked through her helmet "What's brewing inside that pretty head of yours?"

"Well~" letting the word roll off her tongue as she tilted her head to the side "You could keep your armour on and we could….start adapting to each other"

Feral just blinked as he looked into her eyes "I've spent the last four years adapting to so many things Tali….but it's never sounded that good before" he purred playfully as they swayed in each other's arms. "is the engine room empty?" grinning as she just nodded "Do we need anything specific to link the environments?" he laughed as he saw her shake her head, through her visor he could vaguely make the outlines of her biting her lip.

"Well then" he suddenly leant down and picked her up bridal style, making the woman squeak slightly "what are we waiting for?" they just held onto each other as much as they could, Feral encrypting the door to the engine room as it shut behind them.

- Normandy Medical Bay -

A few more hours passed before Shepard woke up, he had a headache and the edges of objects were a little blurry but he was over the worst of his concussion. The meds had had a drastic improvement and the second dose would help even more. Chakwas would want him to keep coming back until she cleared him completely but for now he was cleared to leave the med bay.

He had asked her what the status of the crew was and Chakwas told him the only injury other than him was Garrus, he smiled at the fact that Feral had walked away from yet another impossible situation unscathed after a few hours of sleep.

Shepard finally made his way out of the med bay after talking to Chakwas for a while, stepping out into the mess hall where he found Garrus and Captain Anderson sitting at the table. Apparently Garrus was retelling some of the stories of their exploits on the Normandy. The sound of the door opening and closing drew their attention and Anderson stood up.

"Ah Shepard, good to finally see you up and about" he smiled at the slightly battered N7 "I saw Feral earlier and he looks a lot better off than you"

Shepard laughed and shook his head "Yeah despite what he had to go through to get those enhancements I'd say it was pretty worth it. The guy takes a bullet to the head and 5 minutes later he's complaining of a headache" he shrugged as Garrus snickered slightly in the background.

Anderson rolled his eyes, he'd seen the man survive a bomb and lift something heavier than 5 C-sec officers couldn't even budge an inch and yet the idea of him surviving a bullet wound still sounded so farfetched. "Anyway Shepard I'm not here just for a social call. The council wants to see Ambassador Udina, You and I. I offered to come here and wait for you….Udina was driving me insane."

"What does the council want at a time like this?" Shepard they'd be too busy trying to fix everything at this point to bother seeing him.

"Beats me, but after what you've done it could only be something good. Whenever you're ready suit up and we'll head straight there." Shepard just nodded at Anderson before walking towards his office, unlike Feral he'd had his armour taken off him and it was waiting back in his room. Shepard patted Garrus on the shoulder as he walked past, silent approval for his actions across this whole campaign. He turned around when Garrus spoke up.

"Oh! By the way Shepard" he chirped his mandible's flaring "Feral had the idea to take a team photo before everyone splits up. Figured you'd love the idea and I told him I'd pass it along"

Smiling as he looked over his shoulder he just nodded before walking into his office. 'Definitely a marine' he thought to himself as he looked at the back of his dog tags, the paint chipped slightly on the back of one revealing the small circuit board underneath. 'Good to know they still taught this when Feral was in boot camp'.

- The Citadel Presidium –

"Well that was slightly unexpected…." Feral commented as he sat on one of the seats back from the bridge the council had decided to meet Shepard, the now Councillor Anderson and Udina. Shepard was walking towards him with a big smile on his face as he approached the man.

"Ok how long have you been there and I'm pretty sure eavesdropping on a council meeting like that is a bad thing" Shepard grinned down at him as Feral played innocent.

"I have no idea what you mean Commander…there's no way I could've heard any of that from all the way over here" grinning back playfully at the Spectre "Anderson was the right choice….in my mind anyway….mainly just because I hate Udina to be fair but….I'm sure that's what went through your head too"

Shepard sat down on the bench as Feral scooted over to the side. "I'm sure you've been asked this question a lot so I'll just avoid it. You're more than welcome to stay on the Normandy Feral" he looked across at him "You'd be a welcome addition to the crew roster"

Feral laughed before sighing "You have been good to me Shepard and I appreciate the offer but….I have some ideas I'm trying to bring to fruition. But if they don't work I might just have to hunt you down and ask for your help again though" flashing another toothy grin at the commander.

Shepard raised an eyebrow "Ideas? Anything I should be worried about?"

"No don't worry I'm not going to be doing anything illegal like starting a mercenary group" he rolled his eyes as he sat back "I'll try and do some good, build bridges blah, blah and etcetera."

"Fair enough then, so what are you doing here anyway?" he moved on, when Feral didn't want to talk about something it was near impossible to loosen his tongue.

"Capt….Councillor" he corrected himself quickly and ignored the look Shepard gave him "Anderson sent me a message when you were getting your armour on. I was down in the cargo bay….going through personal effects…." Turning away from Shepard as he told a half lie "and I just tracked you over here, sat down and waited for you all to be down"

"Personal effects?...you don't have any…oh…." Shepard coughed slightly before moving on, the two eventually laughing through the awkward silence. The laughing starting out as quiet chuckles before the two were visibly shaking. Sighing finally before he eventually spoke up again "By the way, Garrus mentioned something about a photo. Where'd you get that idea?"

Feral was still smiling as he looked over "Same place you did Shepard….but you already knew that. A handful of drill sergeants still teach it so don't think you can figure any more about me. The idea was purely nostalgic though…..first team after getting free and I wanted something to remember it by."

Shepard sat in silence for a second "That's what you collected on Nepheron wasn't it? Your dog tags?"

Feral sighed before smiling slightly "You are far too smart for your own good" snorting as he looked down on the floor "Yeah that's what I collected but I don't have them anymore, I got rid of them after the identity incident" he glared slightly at Shepard, letting him know that he was done with this line of questioning.

"I get it, I get it" he raised his hands defensively "not dwelling on the past is something I can understand" he thought back to Elysium, sure he was called the hero but the truth was he still saw so many die. Several friends and very brave men who tried and failed to help hold the line, the real heroes never survived the battle. The two sat in silence before a voice redirected their attention.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Feral looked up to see Udina, the man already hated the super soldier and clearly not being elected to Councillor due to Shepard's recommendation had put him in an even lousier mood.

Feral just pointed behind the Ambassador and grinned sadistically, of all the guilty pleasures in life. Watching Udina squirm was pretty much a universal joy. The politician turned around to see Anderson step up. "I called him here Udina, I needed to pass along something." His omni-tool lit up and shortly afterwards so did Feral's.

Feral sat back and watched the information scan onto the small holographic screen, smiling before looking up at Anderson. "Good work Anderson…..sorry…Councillor Anderson" he shut off his omni-tool as both Udina and Shepard looked confused at the interaction.

"What was that about?" Shepard looked between the two men.

"Building bridges Shepard….building bridges" Feral smirked as he jumped up onto his feet. "Councillor Anderson, thank you for your help" he shook the man's hand quickly but firmly. "Shepard….thank you for everything. Good luck with the rest of this mission, the war of Eden Prime rages on" laughing quietly to himself as he walked off, completely ignoring Udina.

He stepped a few paces before stopping and spinning around 180 degrees on the spot. "Oh I will need somewhere to stay for a week or so."

Anderson laughed "Ambassador Udina can figure something out for you" raising his hand to silence Udina's protests before he even had a chance to voice them.

"Thank you very much" Feral laughed as he saw Udina's face contort into that hilarious glare before spinning around again and walking off happily humming to himself.

Shepard sat on the bench and shook his head at the fact Feral's immature nature was slightly rubbing off on Anderson as well, though the possibility that the old marine just loved pissing off Udina was possible as well. He shouted over to Feral's back "Before you leave the ship later today! We're going to gather in the cargo bay for that photo!" he smiled as Feral just gave the lazy two fingered salute as he walked away.

Feral lit up his omni-tool as he walked along the presidium, looking over the information Anderson had passed onto him. Stepping into the elevator as he scrolled over the files, several Admirals and a couple of very high up politicians had ok'd his plan. Apparently Anderson's name still carried weight. He just really hoped Tali wasn't feeling too sick, it'd probably but a serious downer on this. That being said it was Tali.

Eventually he made it back to the Normandy and worked his way down to the cargo bay. Wrex and Garrus was in a corner by the Mako playing cards but they'd have to wait, he had no idea where Kaidan was and he figured Liara was probably in her office or sleeping in Shepard's quarters. But his target was Ms nar Rayya, he walked into the engine room and saw her sitting on one of the cots. She was looking through his chip again, walking up before sitting down beside her and looking at her omni-tool.

"I'm glad you're enjoying my memories" smirking and then laughing as a photo he probably wished wasn't on that chip "How are you feeling?" he laid his head on her shoulder and smiled up into her eyes as she looked back down at him.

Tali giggled and spoke, her voice sounded a little rough "Your memories are a lot of fun and they're helping take my mind of my headache, the slight fever, a sore throat and the fact my sinuses are blocking" she sat back as she shut off the omni-tool and sat back, Feral sliding down and laying his head in her lap "Although you're much better at taking my mind off all of that…..you and the antibiotics I took" she smiled as she stroked her fingers through Feral's hair gently.

"Yeah sorry about that….my bad?" he shrugged playfully as they laid there together "Any regrets?" raising an eyebrow as he looked up into her shining eyes.

"Well~" she purred as best as she could "Now that I'm feeling a little sick I am having second thoughts" she smiled playfully "Feral I knew this would happen when we linked our environments, I have no regrets" twirling a little tuft of hair in her fingers happily.

Feral pouted playfully before rubbing his head up into her hand "Glad to hear it but….I do have some bad news" the toothy grin appeared on his face again "You may get the chance to be sick again" he lit up his omni-tool and shortly afterwards Tali's lit up too. The quarian raising her arm to look at what he was sending her, her smile dropping and the grip on his hair loosening.

"Feral this is….how did you?" she was stunned. She was looking at a detailed plan to begin building bridges between the Quarians and Humanity. Possible ships for trading, programs for pilgrims looking to develop certain expertise. There was more but eventually she just scanned the information, her eyes were starting to water as she finally realised what Feral had meant by figuring something out.

"I made the point to Anderson that we should be dealing with your species more. You're the best engineers in the galaxy and some grateful migrants could teach us a lot. The Alliance improved the rough edges of the idea but you get the jist. I also made the point that the only reason most races don't deal with you like this is because of the Geth and….well I don't think you're going to do that again" Feral talked slowly, letting it all sink in for Tali.

"All it needs now is to be accepted by the Admiralty board on the Flotilla. It's technically a trial and so the Alliance wanted someone to make sure it goes smoothly if it gets accepted. While I'm not Alliance they figured the guy who came up with this was the best one to send" he smiled as Tali looked down from her omni-tool, her arm dropping down onto his stomach.

"You know…just in case a super soldier isn't a good enough pilgrimage gift" he wiggled playfully as he shrugged his shoulders. He blinked as he watched her wide eyes shut "Tali…" he sat up slowly, sitting up to her level and looking into her visor "Are you ok?"

Tali just blinked as she was brought out of her train of thought, she lunged forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. Taking him by surprise slightly as she clung onto him with every ounce of strength she had "Keelah Feral…." she sniffed, a few tears running down her cheeks. "Of course I'm ok" she smiled through her tears "I'm just so happy"

Feral laughed as he pulled her into his arms, picking her up and then sitting back down with her on his lap. "Told you I could do it" he purred playfully as they cuddled up again. "I'm just glad I don't have to stow away on the ship you choose to give your gift too" they both laughed gently as they sat in the shimmering blue light. "I only got out of one box a month ago"

Tali leaned into him and cuddled in as much as she could "Hey, at least this time I'd have been taking care of you" coughing slightly before getting squeezed in his arms. "Keelah I'm glad we have a week until I…..hopefully, we get to the migrant fleet. I really don't need rumours starting the day I arrive"

Feral laughed, his chest bouncing very slightly as Tali laid on him. "On that note I've gotten a place to stay in case the Normandy disappears before then. It just wouldn't feel like home without you there so you're more than welcome to join me. I'd take the drive core with me but somehow I think people will frown on that…..plus you're easier to carry" sticking his tongue out again as she looked up at him.

The two sat there smiling happily as they cuddled up, Tali didn't even have to respond. It was obvious that she'd follow the one man who'd follow her across the galaxy. Eventually the blue light was replaced by the orange light of both of their omni-tools. Shepard wanted everyone to meet up in the cargo bay, he was in his office and he'd be there soon. "What's this about?" Tali read the message but she didn't understand why he'd sent it to all of the team.

Feral just smiled "Team photo and knowing Shepard he'll probably want to give us a speech. You enjoy seeing my old memories so let's start making new ones together" pushing himself up onto his feet he slowly let her back down. "Come on, we better get out there. One last thing we get to do before this is over"

Tali sniffed before giggling "Oh come on you really think this is over?" the two walking towards the doors to the before she leant back and waited for Feral to unlock the door.

Tapping at the holographic door panel until it finally turned orange "With Shepard?...I highly doubt it" the door hissing open as the two stepped out laughing. Leaving the engine room silent as the blue light shined over the 2 cots sitting by the edge of the wall.

**Author's Note: First and foremost I do plan on carrying this story on into both ME2 and ME3. I'm not sure whether I'll add it straight onto this or make it a completely separate story. Either way I will make sure it is very obvious so if you have enjoyed this story you can find the sequel. I also have a slight idea to make an intermediary story that occurs between ME1 and ME2 but I'm unsure about that. It may become a small project after I finish following along the main story lines. **

**I would just like to say that this was the first story I have ever written and I can't believe anyone began to like this let alone several people. So thank you all for enjoying and thank you for reviewing. The comments and critique have been more than welcome and I hope it's helped me become a better writer. I truly cannot thank you all enough for reading and enjoying and all I have to ask now is that you be patient. This will continue into ME2 and I will write as much as I can whenever I can but at the moment I am currently a few weeks away from my university exams. **

**So don't worry there will be more to come, I just have no idea how quickly it will come X'D**

**Thank you all again for reading and enjoying, it really did help me spur on and write as fast as I could. I hope you join me for the stories to come and I will just say this. Don't expect Feral to be on Freedom's Progress with Tali, if there's one thing we can expect for the characters of Mass Effect. It's that nothing ever goes to plan. **

**Update: Prologue of the sequel is now up, check my profile for the story that follows the events of ME2 **


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